


The Boy in The Red Hood

by iamfrenchy



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alpha Derek Hale, Alpha Hale - Freeform, Angst, Anxiety, Awesome girlfriend, BAMF!Stiles, Badass Stiles Stilinski, Baseball Stiles, Character Death, Eventual Sterek, F/M, Fluff, Hurt Stiles, M/M, Magical Stiles Stilinski, McKayla, Multi, Panic Attacks, Red Hoodies, Sarcastic Stiles, Sassy Stiles, Scarred Stiles, Slow Burn, Spark Stiles Stilinski, Spark! Stiles, Stiles Uses A Baseball Bat, Violent Stiles, magic!Stiles Stilinski, slow burn sterek, sterek
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-14
Updated: 2017-04-13
Packaged: 2018-05-13 22:33:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 9
Words: 34,576
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5719477
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iamfrenchy/pseuds/iamfrenchy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Stiles gets attacked by a talon wielding creature, leaving him in a medically induced coma for three weeks and with scars all up his back. At sixteen he’s done fighting a war that isn’t his to fight so he leaves, dad in tow. </p><p>He finds a normal life in his new town, he settles and finds himself. He finds friends and love in the seaside town and he leaves the supernatural world behind him. </p><p>Well he tries to until he finds himself at Harvard where the supernatural finds him. You can’t escape them for that long when they know of you. Stiles fights and builds a name for himself, one that gets back to the Beacon Hills pack. </p><p>Stiles had hoped for a normal life, but things never work out when you have a sourwolf knocking on your door, begging for your help. </p><p>Or the one where Stiles tries to leave everything behind but the pack pulls him back in and he's a badass when he gets back and kicks major ass.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! Thank you so much for clicking on my humble story. I must say, this Stiles is my favourite Stiles I've written so far and I'm crazy about badass Stiles. The story gets to a rocky start but I promise, it gets awesome, Chapter 3 is where it's at. If you liked it, please comment and tell me and kudos and subscribe and bookmark.  
> Oh and if you could, help me get a better name for the story. The title needs work so if you could comment ideas that would be cool. THANK YOU!
> 
> Credit to http://eneada.deviantart.com/ for the art

Stiles did a lot of things the year he turned sixteen. He drank his first bottle of whiskey, he got the Jeep that his mom had left him, he had fixed up the Jeep after scouring the internet on how to fix a Jeep and any and all problems that one could face. He had some very great times, he had times with his best friend that he would always remember, like the fact that Scott was there to help him finish the bottle of whiskey, he was there when they fixed the Jeep because that was the only way they would be getting anywhere that wasn’t on two wheels that was powered by their own legs.

But sixteen was also the year every single last thing in his life changed, when everything got shit on and he just didn’t know things could get that bad that quickly. When he thinks back on sixteen all he can think of is the fact that he could have stopped everything before it happened by just staying out of the woods that one fateful night. Stiles did a lot of things in his life up until that point, he had lived a lot for just sixteen years, but after that night, he lived years in days.

At sixteen Stiles and Scott went into the woods looking for a piece of a girl and they found it, but they also found an Alpha and everything else that goes bump in the night along with it. Scott was the one that got bitten that night, Stiles still didn’t know why Peter went after Scott when he told Stiles that he always wanted him as the beta, he didn’t ever get the chance to ask after they killed him, well when the last remaining member of his family killed him by slashing out his throat.

A whole lot happened in the year he turned sixteen, he didn’t think something like that could happen but then again, Stiles always took everything that happened in stride. He knew that things happened and would happen for a reason. Stiles didn’t plan on growing up that quickly that year, but when your best friend starts sprouting claws and facial hair and some freakish yellow eyes, you figure out what the hell is happening before he ends up dead and you go along to make sure he stays alive because you don’t have all that many people in your life and you wouldn’t mind just a few more and the ones already there to stay there and to stay alive.

Things turned sour after Peter dying, Derek started turning teenagers who wanted the bite, not the best idea in the world especially when the one beta you tried turning turns out to have some epic problems with self acceptance, you find yourself paralysed a whole lot and a guy who gets controlled by someone a lot more evil than you could anticipate.

Sixteen was a very eventful year with the bite and then the kanima that turned out to be Jackson, that was saved by Lydia and her ever powerful love. Stiles knew she was next level awesome and that being loved by her could save your life, she just proved him right.

But things turned bad after that, one fateful night he ran in with a very lethal type of creature, a hybrid of some kind that didn’t like sarcasm and took running as an invitation to start chasing.

“You have got to be kidding me, really, me? Soft human me, I know a few werewolves that could make this chase so much more fun” Stiles shouted as he ran, he was faster that he was at the start of their adventures, he was a lot of things now, he just didn’t want to add dead to that list.

“Alpha bait” The thing hissed out and Stiles jumped a little, running faster. If any of the pack would just answer their phones it would be so much better.

“Come on, Derek” Stiles pressed the one button again, the phone dialling and Stiles shrieked when the phone answered.

“Derek! Help, thing chasing me, I’m on Main heading onto Second, HELP ME ASSHOLE!” He couldn’t get out much more after that, he felt talons in his back before he got pushed into the ground, the creature didn’t want to play anymore it seemed and Stiles’ fate was sealed as the thing started to tear into him.

The talons ripped through his flesh like a butter knife through warm butter, he felt every slash as the creature laughed, well more like cackled. Stiles just tried to stay on his front, head shielded as the creature ripped it’s talons through soft human flesh. It felt like hours as the creature attacked, later he would find out Derek took four minutes to get to him, but at that moment time had stilled and he couldn’t do much of anything but just try to stay alive.

Stiles remembers the moment the creature was removed from him, but not before it closed its talons and took some skin with it as it was pulled from him. He could hear as the creature was ripped apart and the roar of the alpha but after that he couldn’t quite place anything else. He knew he was picked up and ran to the hospital but he didn’t know how he survived that.

He spent three weeks on his stomach in a hospital bed as they tried to save him, medically induced comas were apparently very real and not very fun to get out of. It took them almost a month to get him ready to just turn around onto his back, cuts scabbed over and any movement made them pull, it took a whole lot to just get him to move his arms, much less his whole body.

“Stiles, you’ve got to tell me what happened, what really happened?” The Sheriff asked after a particularly brutal stretch session that Melissa had inflicted on him. Stiles turned his head away from his dad, why haven’t the pack come to visit? Why hasn’t his friends come in to check if he was okay?

“Where’s Scott and Lydia?” He whispered, talking hurt, the talons had got to his neck, he was so close to being dead that he was stitched together for a very long time before he could heal to where he was now.

“They haven’t been around” John spoke and Stiles could hear how sad he sounded, how he shook his head at his lack of support from his friends. Stiles was mad, he knew if it was Scott in this bed he would be at his side twenty four hours a day.

“They haven’t?” Stiles tried one last time and he turned his head, his dad’s face frowning, sad as he shook his head.

“No one came round, Derek dropped you off but nothing after that.” John watched as a tear streaked down Stiles’ face, he knew for a long time he wasn’t allowed visitors but he had been allowed for a week now.

“Do they know I’m awake?” He tried, maybe they didn’t want to come visit someone in a coma and just didn’t know he was awake for them to visit.

“Melissa dropped the news to Scott when you first woke up” John confirmed and Stiles sighed, steel hardening in his veins. He almost died trying to get away from a monster that was there for the pack and he just smelled like them and was subject to the wrath of the creature. It was their faults that he had to slowly learn how to use every tendon again because they were severed by talons. He was done trying to protect them, they didn’t even try to protect him, they couldn’t even care enough to just come see if he was okay.

“Dad, no matter how crazy this sounds, everything I’m going to tell you is true, every single thing is the truth and nothing is a lie.” He told his father everything, voice scratchy but never wavering as he told him about everything that happened the year he turned sixteen. Stiles told him about Scott, the Hales and their drama with the Argents, Matt and Argent and the kanima, he told him about the fights they had endured and why he always came home bruised, claiming the injuries were from lacrosse. He told his dad about that night, about the creature that had talons and talked like a snake.

“Stiles, what do you need?” The Sheriff asked, shocked and scared but he needed to protect his son, he needed to know how they could do that when it seemed like danger was crawling all over the town he had tried to protect.

“Transfer, get us as far away from here as possible and don’t let anyone know where we’re going” Stiles begged, he didn’t want to be in Beacon Hills, he wanted out, he needed out and he needed it before he turned Seventeen.

It took a few more days but his dad got approval on the transfer, the transfer taking them to the east coast to a small town whose sheriff was retiring and they needed someone to take over the job. Beacon Hills quickly got another listing, John packing up the house at night while Stiles slept in the hospital.

A week later, Stiles was in a new home, all ties cut with Beacon Hills as his dad finished unpacking their house into a much bigger place.

“You didn’t mention that the ‘small town’ you were taking the job in was the Hamptons” Stiles asked shocked, he sat in the wheelchair, he could walk but his muscles weren’t that strong anymore and they needed more physical therapy before he could go without it.

“I didn’t think it was worth mentioning, the department here isn’t that busy, I’ve talked to the old sheriff and he said that the worst he gets is rich kids drinking and people speeding in their cars. Nothing too serious. It’s a quiet town and a quiet lifestyle, away from everything” Stiles understood his dad, he wanted to jump up and kiss the man for how amazing he was with moving them away from home, moving them away from her but then again, a fresh start could just be what they needed.

“I talked to the school, they’ll be ready to take you back once you’re back on your feet but until then they’ll be emailing you the assignments and keeping you up to date on what you need.” His father unpacked the frames from the box he was busy with, placing them on the mantle, fond smile on his face, he turned the frame to Stiles who smiled back, their fishing trip the year Stiles turned ten.

“Thanks dad, really, thank you for this.” John put the box down, kneeling down in front of his son, hands on his knees.

“I would do anything to keep you safe and to make sure you felt safe. Beacon Hills wasn’t safe for you anymore and I couldn’t just stand by and leave you in danger. This is what was needed and you’ll see how great this really will be for us. Come on, the Hamptons, how many people actually stay here year round” Stiles laughed, shaking his head as he started sprouting out facts about the small sea side town.

“Yes, of course, Stiles, you would know the statistics to every small town in the country” The sheriff listened and Stiles sprouted out facts, his Adderall had worn off and his mind was jumping from topic to topic. They spent the night like that, John listening as Stiles talked until he grew too tired and then just wheeled down the hall to the guest room where he would be sleeping until he could get up to his room.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Remember guys, THIS IS A STEREK FIC. It just takes a while for it to get there... Thank you guys for reading, this chapter is a little longer than the first so enjoy that! Hope you guys enjoy it, let me know if you did!

The Hamptons were much like Stiles had expected it to be. It was so painfully normal and mundane that Stiles flourished in the climate.

“Dad, you have got to see how the parking lot at school looks like. I saw three Ashton Martins and then like four Audi R8’s and I shit you not, a kid had a Ferrari, just like as his casual car and I have the Jeep and they stare at me.” Stiles shook his head, his first day at school had been an eye opener, he knew they wouldn’t fit in there but he didn’t think the difference would be that obvious.

“Stiles, the only thing that those kids have is too much money and too little love from their parents. That’s where you differ from them, you may not have the money but you do get all of the parental loving you need” Stiles sighed, his dad laughed at his face, turning back to his paperwork on his desk.

“You have physio this afternoon, right?” Stiles looked up from his phone, nodding. He’s been at physical therapy for the last month to regain all of his functions that were severed by talons.

“Yes, I should get to that” He dropped his things back into his backpack, jetting it back to the Jeep and driving to the physical therapist. The accident had been two months prior but he had scars to show for it now, he would never be able to swim in public now, he would never be able to walk shirtless or with shorts and in a beach town, it would be hard and he would be getting a lot of weird looks, more than he was already receiving with the scars that couldn’t be concealed by his clothes. The scratches around his neck the ones that drew everyone’s eyes, hell, they drew his own eyes whenever he looked in the mirror.

\--

Stiles took to the Hamptons a lot better than he anticipated he would. He found he quite liked the school and how damn high tech everything was, in his head he was living in a town much like Neptune from Veronica Mars, he felt the same kind of vibe from everyone, the difference was just that he couldn’t find the mystery that plagued everyone, he couldn’t find the big secret that everyone was hiding and a month’s worth of trying to find it showed that there just really wasn’t any secrets being kept or the secrets that they were keeping just weren’t the kind that Stiles cared about.

That first day he walked into school, he was stared at, but not for the reason that he thought they were staring. New kids were something for them to marvel at apparently. His first day had gone better than he had thought it would, he had made a whole group of friends and they were all so much nicer than he thought they would be.

Hampton High had a lot going for it, they had a great advanced program for him to enjoy now that he could focus on it. The teachers for once actually enjoying him and knew how to handle him, they gave him extra work that he could enjoy while everyone else stayed on the planning. But Hampton High had one thing missing, Lacrosse, something he wanted to get back into now that he could focus on it too.

“Stiles, you coming to the cages with us?” Stiles looked up from his books, Michael and Chris looking expectantly at him, they both had baseball bats in their hands and he actually nodded. He had played little league in Beacon Hills but that was before he and Scott tried Lacrosse and Scott liked it more so Stiles followed behind him, even when he actually liked Baseball more.

“Yeah but I’m a bit rusty after the accident” His friends had wondered what had happened to him, but they were all too polite to ask him so one day he just shook his head, turned to them and explained that he was attacked in the woods of his old hometown by a mountain lion. They didn’t really ask questions after that and he just referred to it as the accident now, they did too.

“No problem, we’ll just let you play with the softballs first” Michael jeered and Stiles sneered at him, Michael and Chris laughing at him as he followed them. The cages had been something he took to like nothing before, wielding a bat against the supernatural apparently helped his aim and swing a whole lot more than he anticipated. He was more of a natural than he thought he would be, he hit every ball a lot further than he anticipated and he excelled at pitching. The game was just what he needed to get his life back on track, the Hamptons were amazing with that, with getting him back to normal.

With a whole new group of friends, classes and baseball, Stiles had settled into life in the Hamptons. The supernatural world well and truly left behind him and exchanged for the life he always needed, the life full of normalcy and people who actually cared for him.

\--

The year Stiles turned seventeen, he had settled in a new town in a new life and he excelled. The life his dad had chosen for them had been the best choice the sheriff had made. Stiles had watched his dad excel in the town, he watched the man lower his stress levels and watched his cholesterol and blood pressure lower like nothing else and Stiles couldn’t be more thankful for the accident.

The accident that could have ended his life, ended a chapter in his life and started a chapter in his book that he never knew he needed.

\--

“Dude, we’re going surfing after school, you joining?” Michael asked again, the guy had sandy blond hair and bright blue eyes and the girls loved him, Stiles understood why, seeing as he was handsome and so very nice. But not in the way Scott was, no, Michael had a charm to him and he was sure of himself, he never threw a single puppy dog look, he just took life at the horns and lived and Stiles enjoyed that in person.

“I would, but two problems. One, I do not know how to surf and two, I do not own any equipment to surf” Michael scrunched his eyebrows at him, shaking his head.

“No problems there, we’ll stop at mine, you can grab a suit and then a board and then we go surfing” Stiles laughed at him, nodding, Michael had a solution to all problems, well if your bank account stood that high you would too.

After that, Stiles added surfing to his ever growing activities list. The list wasn’t all that long until Stiles was woken up one night from yet another nightmare and his dad looking at him with worry in his eyes.

“Stiles, do you feel safe here?” Stiles nodded at his dad, he hasn’t felt more safe in such a long time. His dad sighed, hand running over his face before turning to Stiles.

“Okay, let me phrase it this way. Do you feel like you can protect yourself?” Stiles paused, looking down at his hands, they were shaking and he still felt the aftershocks of the dream, of how helpless he felt as another alpha jumped him and attacked him and left him defenceless. He shook his head, no, he didn’t feel like he could protect himself.

“Okay, see, this we can fix, I’m signing you up for martial arts at the gym, at least twice a week. You can do baseball the rest of the time but at least twice a week you will go make yourself feel safe again” Stiles couldn’t argue with his dad, he didn’t want to because up until that moment, he knew he needed and wanted it.

\--

“Stiles?” Stiles jumped at the voice, his fight or flight reaction kicking into gear as he turned and immobilized the threat, when the guy wasn’t a threat anymore, Stiles looked down, jumping back at Michael staring back at him.

“Jumpy are we?” Michael asked and Stiles smiled sheepishly at him.

“Sorry man, didn’t know it was you” Stiles sat back down at the table, Michael dropping down next to him. Stiles watched him rub at his arm, feeling guilty about his actions.

“You okay?” He asked and Michael nodded, smile on his face.

“Of course, nothing to worry about. I was just coming to ask you if you were joining us for the bonfire tonight.” Stiles nodded, he had heard about the bonfires the kids held out on one of the private beaches of one of the kids, the bonfire was legendary apparently and even Stiles who hadn’t been there all that long knew what a big deal it was.

“Yeah, of course, won’t miss it” Stiles nodded and Michael smiled, nodding, he turned and looked over the quad where everyone was enjoying the sun. The cheerleading squad was busy practicing on the grass a few feet away and the math geeks were outside, sweating under their long sleeved shirts, the football jocks passing the ball around. It was a great day out and Stiles was sat out there, getting a head start on his homework, apparently a good decision when he thought about the bonfire.

“McKay will be there” Stiles looked back up from where he had returned to his homework, furrowing his eyebrows at Michael.

“That’s great for her” Stiles didn’t understand why Michael had to mention the girl specifically, he didn’t really know her, just knew she was a cheerleader and was in the AP program with him, she was nice, pretty sure but that’s where his knowledge of her stopped.

“For someone so smart you sure are stupid. The girl likes you, the cheerleaders don’t usually cheer at the baseball games, they take too long to cheer at usually” Stiles’ frown deepened, he turned his head and looked at where the cheerleaders were busy, the pretty brunette waved when she caught him looking and he sent her a smile in return, he wasn’t rude.

“She does?” Stiles didn’t know what it felt like for someone to actually like you back, back in Beacon Hills no one looked at him, he was looked over for his friends, Scott taking first position with his new werewolf enhanced physique and his crooked grin and puppy dog eyes, the sole reason Allison even looked at Scott. He, on the other hand, didn’t get attention from either sexes so he just kind of assumed no one would ever give him the time of day. Apparently he was wrong, maybe McKay had fallen for the very nonexistent Stilinski charm.

“Dude, she apparently begged the girls to go cheer for the baseball team and when they finally asked why she said she liked you.” Michael shook his head, smile on his face as he waved to one of the cheerleaders that had winked at him.

“How do you even know that?” He asked, the girls were busy with some kind of basket toss now, McKay on top as she was thrown through the air.

“My sister is the captain, I do her chores and she tells me the latest gossip. To get the girls, you need to infiltrate and gather intel”

“Michael, have you thought about going into the CIA or FBI?”

“Yes, my application is pending” Stiles shook his head at the guy he now called his best friend, he didn’t exactly know what to do with the information he had been given. Stiles had only ever been kissed once and it was at a game of spin the bottle and he didn’t think to fondly back on the memory so he didn’t exactly count the kiss as anything more than a pressing of mouths.

“Now, what am I supposed to do with your intel you gathered?” Stiles asked, eyebrows raised and Michael sighed.

“Okay, I swear you’ve never been considered hot, your old school sucks ass so hard, man. Anyway, what you’re gonna do is pitch up at the bonfire, you’re going to talk to her, you’re going to walk with her on the beach, maybe hold her hand and then you’ll kiss, ask her out on a date and before you know it, you’ll be official and I can go on with my life” Stiles wanted to laugh at the instructions but held them back, shaking his head.

“What if I don’t like her?” Stiles tried and Michael looked about ready to have a heart attack.

“Then I need to go have your eyes tested” 

“We probably should do that at some point, I think I’m going blind in my left eye” Stiles remembered and Michael stared at him.

“I sometimes wonder what the hell happened to you back in that town but then again, I’m too afraid about what you’ll tell me.” Stiles gathered his things around the table, dropping back in his backpack and stared Michael down.

“You are very smart to not question the past, no need to linger there.” The longer people left the past alone, the farther back it gets and the less it counts.

\--

The bonfire was something a lot bigger than just one big circle of fire, there were tables set up with all kinds of food, people were grilling food, there were drinks being served and Stiles was hit again with how not rich he was. He was surprised with the amount of people there, the class size wasn’t that small, standing two hundred strong but there were maybe eighty people around and he could say he knew about half of them seeing as they were cheerleaders and on the baseball team.

“Stiles! You made it” Michael dropped an arm over his shoulder, leading him to one of the bonfires, Stiles followed, nodding his head in greeting at his friends, his eyes flitting around the beach. He was always vigilant, his surroundings were always at the back of his mind, a habit he just couldn’t seem to break.

“Yeah, glad I could make it, where is everybody?” He was under the impression that the whole class would be there and that the party would be a lot wilder than the one he was experiencing. People were talking in groups, there was music on but not thumping and the people walked around relaxed, there were a few people swimming and surfing and he could see some up at the house.

“This is everybody, bonfire nights are a lot more exclusive, not everyone gets in” Stiles nodded, so he was part of the in crowd and he didn’t even notice it, interesting. He spent the night talking to his friends, laughing and joking with them, they didn’t get drunk exactly but someone did spike the punch and everyone was a little more friendly and touchy than usual.

At about one that morning he had made himself comfortable a few paces away from the party, it was still in full swing but he needed a little space from the loud conversation and the beach was quiet a few feet from the people.

“Stiles?” He heard a soft voice, startling him, his gaze ripping away from the waves, eyes finding a silhouette a few paces away from him.  

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you” Stiles recognized the voice the second time it spoke, McKay coming closer, standing at his side.

“No it’s fine, you can sit down if you want?” He tried and she sank down next to him, smiling at him. They turned back to watching the waves, Stiles, apparently, wasn’t good with starting conversations with girls that liked him. He tried a few times but couldn’t think of anything to say so he just quietly, waiting for her to start talking.

“Is it true that you’ve never played baseball before coming here?” She asked, sport seemed to be the safest topic she could think of and Stiles couldn’t fault her, he would have started with something like male sperm whales or dolphin facts. The ocean was a weird, fascinating place.

“Sort of? I played little league but then my best friend didn’t like it and tried lacrosse, he liked it better and I kind of followed. We weren’t really good, he got better at it, I didn’t. I should have stuck with baseball” She nodded, her eyes flicked to him and he could see some gold reflected in her green eyes from the moon, he looked up at the sky, full moon, shaking his head, he turned back to her.

“You’re still very good for someone who hasn’t played in so long.” She complimented and he smiled.

“Thanks, I’ve been playing better since the cheerleading squad decided baseball was cheer-able” Stiles hinted and she laughed, shaking her head.

“So you heard?” Stiles nodded, she pulled up her knees to her chest and rested her head on her knees, turning her head to Stiles.

“Yeah, apparently people can be bought.” Stiles replied and she nodded, her eyes searched his face, probably looking for any signs of rejection.

“You don’t find it creepy? Getting a whole squad to come cheer for you guys but with an ulterior motive?” She asked, Stiles could tell how nervous she was and he didn’t like having that effect on her. He reached out, taking one of her hands from her legs, entwining their fingers.

“Not at all, kind of flattering, but I’ll give you a hint. You could have just come support and watch” She looked down at their hands, smile faint on her face.

“But if I did that, how would you have noticed me?” Stiles shook his head.

“I noticed you a lot earlier than that” She smiled brighter this time and Stiles returned the gesture. McKay was beautiful up close, beautiful in her own way, in a different way that Lydia and Allison was, she was soft and self assured but smart and witty and Stiles could feel himself like her, he could see himself dating her. He could see himself fall for her and maybe more but that was Stiles’ brain, always seventeen steps ahead when it wasn’t even on the first step properly. 

“Do you want to take a walk with me?” He asked and she nodded, he got up, helping her up, they shook the sand from their clothes, heading down the beach. Stiles couldn’t help but reach over and take her hand in his, his heart soaring when she held his hand just as hard as he was holding hers.

They got to talking, Stiles realizing that they had a lot more in common than he expected them to have. They talked about how Star Wars was the best movie franchise and that they both liked Harry Potter, Stiles’ was sorted in Ravenclaw according to Pottermore and she was a Hufflepuff, they had laughed about not being in the main houses, Stiles explaining that he could probably be in Slytherin too but his thirst for knowledge would make him more Ravenclaw than Slytherin. They talked about music and their favourite bands, Stiles mentioning that he could play drums, he hadn’t played much the last few years but he could probably play if you put him in front of a set. McKay could sing, she had a beautiful voice and Stiles had heard her sing in the hallway sometimes when she was busy at her locker. They talked about a whole lot of things and a whole lot of nothing and Stiles hadn’t ever felt like that, he hadn’t ever been so free and open with any one and he couldn’t help but love it.

“You’re shivering, here” He stopped them on their tenth lap of the beach, pulling off his red hoodie, draping it around her shoulders, she smiled up at him, stepping closer to him, her eyes held his as she leaned up, kissing his cheek, the kiss landing just at the side of his mouth.

“Thanks” She dropped back onto her heels, she waited for Stiles to reply, a smile on her face and he lifted his hand, tucking a stray hair behind her ear.

“Do you want to go sit down at the fire?” He looked over her head, the bonfire night was coming to a close and so was the night, when he looked at his watch it was nearing five o’clock and they hadn’t stopped talking since one that morning.

“Yeah, my legs could use the heat” He followed behind her, her hand still in his and they dropped onto a blanket that was laid out on the sand, their friends talking, Michael and Rachel cuddling on a stump, Michael nodding at Stiles, he returned the gesture, turning his head to look at McKay. Her head was drooping, she was tired and her eyes had gone glassy. He laid back down on the blanket, surprised at how little sand was on it, he pulled her down with him, her head resting on his chest as he looked up at the sky, the fire crackling and people softly talking around them.

“You can sleep, I’ll wake you up when the sun comes up” He promised and he felt her settle, he felt her breath even out and he set his alarm to vibrate in an hour, putting it back in his pocket, closing his eyes.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The much anticipated third chapter! Not really. This one is dedicated to my very new but very amazing beta DeanWinchest, you've been such a great help, thank you for reading and helping me when I don't really know how to ask for help. 
> 
> Thank you guys for reading! Kudos and comment if you guys liked it, let me know what you think. Comments make my day!

Dates with McKay happened like the bonfire night happened, they progressed through them. Both of them nervous at the prospect of dating someone and knowing it could end in two ways, it could end or it couldn’t.

Their first date was a classic movie and dinner date and Michael had applauded him on doing something so normal. Stiles didn’t have the guts to tell him that it was the only thing he could afford, McKay didn’t mind as much, just happy to be going out with him, he felt the same way.

They spent the first few dates just doing things they enjoyed, it was a picnic on the beach that had Stiles flailing.

“Stiles, what are we?” Stiles had stared at her, her brunette hair blowing in the wind and her green and gold eyes stayed on him, he looked shocked at her.

“Uhm, what would you like us to be?” Stiles asked and she smiled, fond of how flustered he got.

“I’d like to call you my boyfriend” She was a lot more self assured in the situation, Stiles was still a bumbling idiot when it came to their relationship.

“I’d like that too, to call you my girlfriend. Girlfriend and boyfriend. We can do that, yeah, boyfriend and girlfriend. We’ll be exclusive and official” Stiles went on and on, McKay looking at him, amused and he sighed.

“You could stop me at any time” She shook her head.

“Nope, you’re cute when you go on like this” She laughed and he shook his head, leaning over, catching her lips in a kiss, she kissed back and he couldn’t list five things better than that feeling, hell, he couldn’t list one thing better than kissing the girl he liked.

“I’m telling people you didn’t even ask me, I had to ask you” She muttered against his lips and he pulled back.

“You didn’t ask, you said and I’m asking now. McKayla Johnson, will you be my official, exclusive girlfriend?” She laughed, kissing him again and he could feel her smile, she nodded when she pulled back.

“Only took you 7 dates” She pointed out and he huffed. Kissing her harder, every time she tried to say something, he kissed her again, after the 15th time she placed her hand over his mouth.

“What are you doing?” She asked and he spoke, her hand muffling his words. She sighed, pulling her hand away, he smiled cheekily at her.

“The longer I kiss you, the less sassy things you have to say”

“Well-“ He kissed her again and she didn’t even argue after that one.  

\--

Since arriving in the Hamptons, Stiles had changed. His body healed after the accident, the scars were still bad but a lot better than they were at the beginning. But with healing he had grown too, between the baseball, surfing and martial arts he was doing, he had buffed up, his shoulders had grown broader, his chest too, but he was still lithe and fast, the muscles telling off agility and speed, not brawn. He had grown his hair out too, his short hair now in a longer quiff, McKay always muttering that he had to actually style it, Stiles.

He had grown into himself the two and a half years he was in Hampton High. He grew comfortable with himself, grew into the man he didn’t ever think he would be. He had surrounded him with great people, Michael his best friend at his side as they played baseball, going to state each year and winning too, they stuck together like Stiles never expected someone to stick with him.

He had McKayla, McKay, the girl that loved him and he loved, the amazing girl that was his number one cheerleader, that helped him cook low fat food for his dad, the girl that he could see himself marrying because he had that option now and he could see him spending his life with her because she was just so extraordinary.

Over the two and a half years that he lived in the Hamptons, Stiles grew up and into himself. He grew to know that there were things that went bump in the night but if you didn’t seek them out, they wouldn’t do anything to you. He knew of them but it was like the Hamptons had protective barriers around it and that they just never could get in. He wouldn’t be shocked if he found it to be true.

Senior year found Stiles Valedictorian of his class, graduating top of his class wasn’t something he or his father knew would happen. But when he got handed his diploma, he had the extra sash and medal to prove it. He also had the acceptance letters from Harvard and Brown to show for it.

He didn’t apply to a single west coast school, the odds of running into one of them was too high. He knew Lydia would be heading for CalTech for Applied Mathematics and Science, Allison was heading to Stanford for Medieval Literature and Weaponry (he didn’t know you could major in that) and Scott was at Cal State for Vet School, they couldn’t track him but he could keep record of him. He knew Derek had went back to Columbia, he had finished his degree in forensic accounting and was working at a firm in New York. Stiles was heading to Harvard in Massachusetts and he was still far away from the pack and the dangers they held.

He had read about Harvard in his forums, that he found in the very dark side of the internet. The walls were built with Mountain Ash infused bricks, the pavements were laced with the substance and supernatural beings wouldn’t be able to get close to the campus. There had been wards placed around the school and Stiles had made sure about that. He had checked with his forums and the nearest pack had been 300 miles away and there wasn’t any other activity close to the university.

“Stiles, why are you researching this again?” McKay was sprawled on his bed, it was a few days before they would be driving down and moving in to the dorms. Stiles looked up from the forum webpage, turning around to look at her, he wheeled the chair closer to the bed, taking her hands in his, kissing the back of both.

“I’m just making sure everything is still alright, that’s all” He supplied, he never could tell her about the things he’s seen, she had tracked his scars, had tried asking but he never could tell her the truth about the situation.

“Is everything fine at Harvard?” She didn’t know what could have him so nervous but then again, she trusted him, she knew he had reason to be nervous about going someplace new. She had grown used to him checking every place they went to, he checked every vacation spot and resort, he always had to make sure.

“It’s the safest school for us.” He supplied, wheeling back to the laptop, closing it and standing up from his chair, dropping down on the bed next to her.

“One day, you’ll tell me why you’re always so damn nervous and on edge” She whispered and he knew she was right, he would, one day.

“One day, promise, not right now, but one day” He kissed her forehead and she dropped her head on his chest.

“Let’s nap, I feel like I need a nap,” She muttered and he chuckled.

“You slept until noon, it’s two” She nodded, he knew she had a grin on her face.

“Yes, I’ve been awake for two hours, how can you not want to take a nap”

\--

He must have known things wouldn’t go as planned, he must have known that things just don’t go well for three years and then just keep on going great.

He finds her in front of his door, scratches running down her chest, from her shoulder down to her belt. Stiles jumped into action, he may have been out of practice but his instincts were still right where they were when he last had to use them. It took him seconds, taking McKay by her hand, pulling her into his room, hands ripping away the tatters of her shirt. He reached under his bed, grabbing the first aid kit, disappearing quickly to wet the towel he had grabbed.

“Okay, I need you to stay still while I do this” She was in shock, eyes following his every move. Stiles may have been friends with people who could heal but he often found himself in the position she was in, Deaton or Melissa having to patch him up before he left.

“Stiles?” She asked and he paused his movements, towel on a cut and she winced. He lifted his hand, leaning up and pressing a kiss to her forehead.

“You are absolutely fine. The cuts aren’t deep enough, don’t worry” He muttered, he didn’t know if it was to reassure her or himself.

“Deep enough?” She asked and he nodded, the cuts were still gaping and they should take her to the ER but too many questions would be asked, the cuts were too big and broad to be a dog and there wasn’t any animals they could give the fault. They would have to do this the old fashioned way and Stiles has never been so thankful for the first aid course he had completed and then broadened by befriending a paramedic.

“Yeah, I’ll tell you later, I need to get you stitched up” She grabbed his hands, he looked up at her, her makeup smudged and eyes big as saucers.

“You are not stitching me up. Take me to the ER” She insisted and he paused, looking her  straight in the eyes.

“Are you willing to answer the questions they’re gonna ask. Are you going to tell them that a half animal man attacked you that didn’t look human and had glowing eyes and claws?” She paused, eyes wide, he went back to patching her up, looking up to make sure she was still with him.

“How did you know what attacked me?” She whispered and he smiled, the smile bitter and he shook his head.

“I know a whole lot more than I lead on, I really hoped that we’d be safe here. Guess there’s a rogue out there” He handed her the booze he had stashed and she lifted an eyebrow at him.

“You want to be sober when I stick needle and thread through you?” He asked and she took the bottle, chugging for a while, she was a lot braver than he gave her credit. Half of the bottle gone she nodded to him.

“Do it” He nodded, they fell into silence as he stitched his girlfriend back together, she winced but kept still. When he looked up at her, her head was tilted to the ceiling, taking another long drink of the bottle.

“Okay, I’m done.” He threw away the packages of the gauze and tape, grabbing a shirt and handing it to her, she smiled in thanks, wincing at the action of trying to put the shirt on. He sighed, helping her into it, kissing her hair.

“Mind telling me what the fuck happened to me?” She asked and he shook his head, he didn’t want to tell her while she was drunk and in shock.

“Not now, tomorrow, get some sleep and I’ll tell you in the morning” She sighed, staring him down and he shook his head.

“I’m going to be right here, promise. Get some sleep” He helped her into his bed, he knew he’d get crap from the RA if he saw her there but he couldn’t let her go back to her own dorms. Stiles dropped down in front of his laptop, pulling up the Harvard Supernatural Forum that he once again found in a very dark corner of the net, he scanned the new posts.

_Rogue Omega spotted around campus. Not sure what it’s doing there. Looked feral. - LK_

He sighed, he should have kept a closer look on the forum but he was mid test week and he didn’t have time to check things when he was busy with his pre-med course work.

_Last location of omega? – SS_

He posted, he needed updates if he was going to take care of the threat. He went through his mental inventory, he had wolfsbane stashed in jars under his bed in a duffle bag and mountain ash and mistletoe too. He eyed his baseball bat in the corner of his room, he would have to go get a new one before their next practice but he needed that one for some adjustments.

He found a twenty four hour hardware store in town, heading there after he made sure that McKay would be okay in the room. He scattered some ash, using his spark to save some of the ash, in front of the door and window, deeming it safe before he rushed out, bat and duffle in tow. If people looked it would just look like one of the Junior Varsity guys heading to the cages late at night, nothing odd and out of place. He dropped everything in the Jeep, heading to the store, rushing through the store. He didn’t have too many things to grab, just some barbed wire, some nails and screws of different sizes and paint. He used the self checkout and left the store.

He broke into the mechanical engineering lab, dropping the bat onto the table, pulling out his supplies and staring at the watch. Five hours until sun up. He jumped into action, pulling out the wolfsbane, crushing it with the ash and mistletoe, mixing it with the paint, dipping the screws and nails and wire into the mixture. This was going to be a hell of a lot more potent than they would think. He used his spark that night more than he has in the last three years, whispering to himself as he strengthened the herbs he used. Muttering about wolves and leaving him alone, couldn’t they just not come near him?

When the paint had dried enough, he got to work, wrapping the wire around the bat. Nailing it in place and then using screws and the rest of the nails to make more pointy spots. When he was done, he took some practice swings with it, smiling at the weight of the bat. He didn’t have one of the highest batting scores on the team for shits and giggles. He wasn’t the sixteen year old kid that was afraid of the things that went bump, he was the thing they had to be afraid of now. They attacked the wrong girl and he would get some sweet revenge for it.

He was in the room as promised when she woke up, groggy and with a mega hangover but she smiled in thanks as he helped her drink the aspirin and bottle water he had ready for her. They ate in silence until she felt human enough to turn to him and then just stared at him.

“You said you wanted to know, you can tell me you don’t want to know and I won’t tell you. I’ll leave it alone and we can go on like it never happened. But once you know, you can’t just forget it. You’ll start being like me, always on edge and vigilant of everything. I don’t want that for you but if you want to know I won’t stop you” He placed his cup down, staring her down from where he sat at his desk, the forum was still open and people were alerting him of movement, he knew the omega was around campus but couldn’t get on campus, he knew it would hide now since it was day but tonight he would be talking to it.

“Tell me, I want to know, I need to know” She decided, he had grown so used to how determined she was, he just didn’t know she would act this brave in the face of the scary unknown.

“Okay, the thing that attacked you last night was a rogue omega werewolf. Omega wolves are wolves that don’t have packs, that don’t have alphas to keep them in check. Werewolves, they’re a lot like the movies they just shift whenever they want to if they have control over it. Wolfsbane, mistletoe and mountain ash keep us safe against them and usually they’re not dangerous, they live among us and you won’t know if you didn’t know what to look for.” She stared at him like he had grown an extra head and he sighed, pulling his shirt over his head and letting her look at his scars again, she knew them but now he wanted to look at them for what they were.

“I wasn’t attacked by a mountain lion. Remember I told you about Scott? Back in Beacon Hills I was part of a pack. Scott was attacked one night, he got bitten by a feral alpha and got turned. A lot of shit happened but to cut it short, the alpha turned out to be Derek’s uncle and Derek had to kill him to stop him from killing everyone else and because Peter, Derek’s uncle, killed Laura, Derek’s sister and last remaining relative. Derek, then alpha, turned a few teenagers, Isaac, Erica and Boyd and Jackson and they became a pack. Scott was pack adjacent and I was in the middle, helping Scott and Derek fight evil in Beacon Hills because apparently it was a beacon for everything that went bump. One night I was out, looking for the monster of the week but I wasn’t prepared and the thing attacked, it had talons and was part snake or something and it clawed me to shreds. I called Derek and he saved my life, not the first time I was close to death that year. Dad and I moved a month after the accident and then settled in the Hamptons where nothing went bump.” He explained as best he could without giving her the full version story that would take too damn long. She stared at him and then turned her head, cocking it to the side.

“Okay, not to sound crazy but I think you bumped your head. Werewolves are real?” She tried and he nodded, completely serious. He pulled up a very secret folder on his laptop, he had taped Scott training with Derek one day to see where they could work on things, he couldn’t get himself to delete the video and he was thankful he could show it now.

“Just watch this, it’s not fake or CGI or anything. It’s Derek and Scott training” He pressed play and sat back, his face coming onto the screen.

 _“Scott and Derek training diary one”_ He watched on the screen as he panned over to the shifted beta and alpha, they didn’t look at the camera, flares being a thing. They nodded and suddenly the screen erupted in full on werewolf fight. The fight was nothing like anything he had seen, Hollywood would never be able to get on that level, the growls and snapping sounded through the speaker.

 _“Healing from an alpha attack takes longer, but beta inflicted wounds on an alpha takes like seconds.”_ He heard himself mutter as the two finally stopped fighting, Scott panting on the ground, blood everywhere, Stiles panning to show a healing scratch on Derek’s arm. The tape stopped and he turned to look at McKay.

“Okay, werewolves are real and there's one out there that’s attacking people. What are we going to do about it?” She asked, he knew there was a reason why he loved her. She looked determined to fight and he shook his head.

“Yes, very real and very dangerous and you’re not going to fight one. I’ll sort it out, don’t worry” She shook her head at him.

“No, you’re not, you’ll get hurt again, like you did when you were back in high school” Stiles took her hands in his, smiling at her.

“I won’t, I was sixteen then, I was gangly limbs and flailing more than I breathed. I’ll be fine now, I’ve been training since I got in the Hamptons and I know how to incapacitate a wolf. I’m not taking you out there, you’ll get hurt again and you’re not ready to fight and hopefully won’t have to, ever.” He decided and she had a worried look on her face, he shook his head at her.

“Don’t worry, things will be fine. Promise” She nodded, letting him kiss her, she laid back down, wincing at her stitches and he turned back to the forum.

_No sightings of omega, no attacks reported. All is safe – VM_

He took the day to study and keep an eye on McKay, making sure that the wounds stayed wounds and then to make sure that they stayed infection free. That afternoon he walked her back to her dorm, kissing her quickly and making her promise to stay in for the night. She made him promise to let her know he was safe.

He stayed until someone reported a sighting and then grabbed his duffle bag, red hoodie on with the hood up.

_Omega in parking lot of Pandemonium. – VM_

Pandemonium was a club in town that everyone went to, the place was always packed and Stiles sure as hell hoped the omega wouldn’t go in and create chaos. His Jeep screeched into a parking spot, the lot wasn’t lit and dark, he could hear the thumps of the music as he opened the door, jumping out, bat at the ready.

It didn’t take long, he heard the shouts a few paces away from him, a couple of girls running his way, something behind them, they rushed past him, leaving him to look at the omega, it wasn’t much bigger in size than Scott was. It must be young, the shift a shock to his system and not under control yet.

“Woah there Fido” Stiles stopped it as it tried to rush past him, the wolf liked girls apparently. The wolf turned its gaze to him, blue eyes. He’s killed an innocent before.

Things happened so quickly after that, the wolf tried to slash at him and found itself personally introduced to the bat, Stiles heard the bat as much as he felt it make contact, the wolf howling as the splinters of infused paint went into his body. It dropped down from the one hit, hands at his side, hissing and writhing from the paint.

“You have two options. I kill you with this very fun bat and make the pain last as long as possible. Or I leave you to get the fuck out of dodge, you leave and go find a pack and never come back. I like the first option, seeing as you did try to kill my girlfriend” Stiles pressed the bat into his chest, the wolf hissing as the wolfsbane, mistletoe and mountain ash burned him, it was quite the combination.

He watched as the shift left the guy, revealing a younger boy, at seventeen he probably didn’t have control of his wolf and was sure as hell not getting there on his own.

“I’ll leave, I’ll leave, just don’t kill me.” He hissed through the pain, Stiles pulled his bat away from the guy, resting it over his shoulder where there wasn’t any spikes.

“Okay, great. The next closest pack in three hundred miles south from here. If you don’t leave, I’ll come find and kill you” The wolf nodded, hands still at his side.

“What the hell are you?” Stiles tilted his head at that, he shrugged.

“Sure as hell not a hunter or you’d be dead now.” He watched him run away, hand  clutching at his side. Stiles turned back, jumping into the Jeep, dropping the bat under his seat, ready if need be. He drove over to McKay’s dorm, singing along to the music blasting through the Jeep, hands tapping.

He knocked on her door, three times before she opened the door, relief evident on her face. She pulled him into a hug, careful of her stitches, he hugged back, as tightly as he could, following her into the room. They sat on the bed, her roommate hasn’t returned yet and they were thankful for the privacy.

“Everything work out?” She asked and he nodded, leaning against her headboard.

“Yeah, sent him running. From what I can tell, he got turned and the alpha didn’t stick around to teach him how to control the shift.” She nodded, taking in his hands, he looked down, shocked at the blood spatter on them.

“Please tell me that’s his and not yours” She jumped up from the bed, getting a towel for him and he wiped his hands clean.

“I got him with my bat” She chuckled, shaking her head.

“Of course you took the bat, you’re going to need something better than a bat if you keep on doing this”

“The bat is fine, and I’m not going to keep on doing this, it was a onetime thing and now we’re done with that” She nodded, laying down, pulling him so that she was the little spoon.

“Hope so, let’s get some sleep, yeah?” He nodded, thankful for the rest they could get before their tests the next day.

\--

_Saw a boy in a red hood take on the omega. One strike and the omega was down, fucking amazing. – VM_


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's a little late, my laptop doesn't want to charge so I'm posting this from a computer at uni. Hope you guys like it and THANK YOU so much for the sweet comments, they really help my writing and I love hearing from you guys!!

“Oh you have got to be kidding me” Stiles muttered, the Jeep rattled and shook, shaking Stiles off of the road as he pulled over, slamming the steering wheel before apologizing, Roscoe was VERY touchy and any and all insults were taken to heart and he couldn’t have her die on him now.

He dropped out of the Jeep, lifting the hood. Of course she would give trouble when he was driving on a road that wasn’t busy, surrounded by empty lots of land and patches of trees. It was way past midnight and he just wanted to get home, getting the supplies he needed took a whole lot longer than he expected and left him in the dark trying to get back to his dorm room.

He fiddled with some switches and nuts, he usually knew where the problem was but it seemed like Roscoe was mixing it up and he would have to look harder than the fuel valve. He fiddled some more, cursing as he went. He rounded the Jeep, trying again, but with no luck.

He stood at the wheel, tapping it. AAA would take forever to get to him, no place was open now. McKay’s car was in the shop and Michael and the rest of their friends were back home for some kind of party, McKay staying behind with him to sort out some things, to get supplies and stock up on their stash, not that it was urgent but it was needed, Stiles liked being prepared even if they haven’t seen a supernatural creature in months.

“Oh come on” He sighed, dropping his head on the wheel, turning it to look out over the road, he frowned when he saw something approaching, more like a few somethings. He climbed back into the driver’s side seat. He watched the figures walk across the road, right to him and he tried the Jeep one last time, hoping that he could avoid the fight but to no avail, she sputtered but didn’t want anything from him. He slowly dropped his hand to the side of his seat, hand closing around the bat, making sure it was loose for him to grab and strike.

The figures were a few feet away from him when he saw the bright violet eyes. He thought through the beastiary, what were-creature had violet eyes? He watched them, they knew he knew of them but he was waiting to see what their plan was.

“Boys, it seems we have a very stranded human” A girls voice spoke and he sighed, they just expected him to be normal, to not know what was going on. He watched them, hand around his bat and he tried to smile, tried to act useless until the very last second.

“Hi, yeah, my Jeep seems to have died, do you guys have a car for me to get a jump off of?” He tried, they had stepped closer now, forming a semi circle, there were three of them, the violet eyes still shining. Violet eyes? Werecats Stiles remembered, lithe creatures that depended on speed, they didn’t usually travel in big packs.

“Yeah, sorry, no” The girl laughed and he sighed.

“You guys can turn around now, spare yourself the pain” He dropped the act, turning his body from his seat, body poised to attack if they did. His feet resting against the car now, ready to go.

“You think you can take us? Stupid” The guy laughed and the rest of the pack joined in but just as quickly as they started they stopped.

“You guys are great, really. Did you practice that?” He asked, hand resting against the door frame, tapping at the side of the door, eyes scanning them, their surroundings, making sure there wasn’t more of them.

“I’m done with this” The girl spoke again and suddenly they were rushing at him. Stiles was always amazed at how everything seemed to slow down when he was in danger, he felt his spark under his skin, lighting his eyes up. Glad he had been practicing, glad he could use it with his bat. In one fluid movement, Stiles grabbed the bat, stepping out from the Jeep, his magic sweeping over the bat, lighting it up blue and bright, the magic looked like fire and he saw the fear in their eyes, but they persisted. Stiles sighed, taking big swings at the two betas that attacked him, leaving them writhing on the ground, the magic burning them along with the wolfsbane mixture on the silver wire. He stopped in front of the alpha, eyes shining bright and raised the bat to her neck.

“Think wisely about what your next move is gonna be” He advised, her eyes narrowed and she pounced on him, she was fast but for some reason, Stiles was always faster. He stepped out of her way, she shrieked turning and he took another swing, kicking her when she passed him, she dropped to the ground and he sighed, stepping up to her.

“Pick your fights next time” He shook his head, the bat pressed against her neck, the magic slowly burning her. She growled at him and he flashed his eyes, her eyes growing wide as he silenced her.

“No, not a warlock.” He was done with the fight, shaking them off as he immobilized them.  Stepping back to the Jeep, using his spark to resolve the problem like he should have done from the start. He picked up his phone, dropping a text to the hunters in town. Using his magic, he let them lay in a line, looking down at them.

“What did this teach us? Don’t attack people. Really, guys, not cool” He shook his head, dropping his bat back where it stayed, the Jeep starting again and he drove off. McKay was going to be so pissed that she missed the action.

\--

After the omega had attacked McKay things had went downhill for them at Harvard, well more like the surrounding areas. It had been silent for a few weeks before some wolves pitched up again, the forum blowing up with their activity. They were raiding shops and attacking people and Stiles couldn’t just let them wreck everything. He took his bat again, fighting against a pack of five wolves, he won but he did have some wicked scarring to show for it.

It took a run in with a witch to see what kind of power he really possessed. She had stared shocked at him when he had approached her, he just needed her to stop killing people for her sacrifices, it wasn’t too much to ask, was it?

“You have so much power. I haven’t seen a spark in nearly four hundred years” She watched him, eyes bright and he had been caught off guard.

“What do you know of being a spark?” He asked and her eyes brightened, glowing yellow and he watched her, still poised for when she attacked.

“Sparks are some of the most powerful magical beings. They have amazing abilities, doing magic without spells by just believing in themselves and their magic. The more self assured and self believing the spark is, the more dangerous and powerful they are.” It had piqued his interest and after sorting her out, mistletoe and witches weren’t friends after all, she wasn’t a threat anymore and he found himself doing research about sparks. She had been telling the truth, sparks believed in themselves and their magic and that’s all there really was to it. The only limits they had were the ones they put on themselves.

By the fourth attack, McKay had begged him to teach her to fight. He had complied after she refused to talk to him for a week because he didn’t want to let her into such a dangerous world, but she took to it like a moth to a flame. She was amazing at hand to hand combat, her cheerleading being a huge plus in her flexibility and agility, she could flip circles around him and he wouldn’t be able to get a hit in. Five months later she was a sword wielding badass, the sword was forged with wolfsbane in the silver blade. Not the easiest weapon to get a hold of.  

After that, they fought against anything that came across their path. They didn’t go looking for it until it was hurting people, the two of them became quite a fighting pair, taking down packs and covens and anything that tried to destroy the lives of people.

Between the fighting and spark training, Stiles had come across a love for tattoos, he had started out with a protection rune on his arm but it soon turned to more runes, for power and speed and agility and knowledge. McKay going with him every time he went to get a new one. He knew that they wouldn’t really be able to work as real runes would but he linked them with his Spark, his power growing every time he added to the ink on his arm.

\--

“Werecats met me out on Silverton Road, pack tried to take me on. Hunters should be with them by now” He dropped down onto the bed, she looked up from her books, looking him over for any bruises or cuts and he smiled.

“How many?” She asked, her attention now on him, he looked at her green eyes, once again shocked at how much they looked like Derek’s eyes.

“Three, they were our age, so the pack should be quite new. They couldn’t fight, like at all” He explained, she wheeled over to him, resting her legs on the bed.

“You were lucky, it could have ended like that Ramirez pack” Stiles winced, the pack of eight wolves he and McKay had took down sophomore year. They had still been very new to the fighting and McKay wasn’t as sure footed as she was now.

“That was crazy and you know it” He scratched at the scar that ran down his side, that wasn’t a very fun place to have stitches.

“We’re juniors who are trying to study at Harvard and fight the evil supernatural. That’s crazy” She pointed out and he nodded, he couldn’t really argue with that.

“Almost seniors, almost done with this place” She stood up from her spot, dropping down next to him on the bed, entwining their hands.

“You still have med school after that. You know, that thing you’ll need to do to be a doctor.”

“Yeah but you still have to take the LSAT’s and then do law school. We’re still stuck here, for at least another four years” He supplied and she sighed, shaking her head.

“Tell me again why we want to achieve such highs?” She turned her head, their noses almost touching, he tilted his head, licking the tip of her nose, her nose scrunching at the action.

“You’re disgusting” She muttered and he shook his head at her.

“You chose to date me” He pointed out and she laughed.

“Just cause you were cute”

“Past tense? Excuse you, I am still cute” He huffed and she nodded.

“Yes, Stiles, you are very cute with your scars and tattoos and baseball bat. You’re freaking adorable” She deadpanned and he nodded.

“How else would I be cute? That is the definition of cute. In the dictionary they have a picture of me under cute” She sighed, kissing him quickly.

“You’re insufferable”

\--

They stick to their schedules, well their beyond crazy schedules that make them cranky and sleep deprived, but they stick to them. They train three times a week, Stiles at baseball practice four days a week seeing as he made varsity and they were playing the leagues and people were taking notice of him. The tattooed senior pre-med student that liked playing baseball was a headliner, that’s for sure.

When they weren’t busy with training and school work, they were fighting off monsters of the week. Michael had joined them senior year, shouting as he rushed through the dorm room door, scratches on him and panting about a lizard looking thing that was sure as hell chasing him, on campus. Kanima they had established when Michael dropped to the floor, paralyzed. It took them three hours but the problem was solved and the poor guy that had been stuck in shifter-limbo was sent on his way with a hunter. He joined in with their merry band of two and they fought against the evils of the night, after they trained him enough that he could fight against them, he took to the bow, not surprising as he was in the archery club.

Senior year flew by in a whirl of tests and fights, the list long and tiring when they thought back to what they had fought. Between the packs of were-creatures they fought a warlock, a group of banshees and then later a group of skin walkers. They crossed paths with a phoenix and shit you not, a dragon made its appearance too. They didn’t have eyebrows for weeks after that.

But after everything, Stiles found himself graduating summa cum laude from pre med, valedictorian of his class, McKay doing the same with pre law and Michael graduating magna cum laude from marine biology. He left that summer, moving back home to work at the labs there. Stiles and McKay moved out of the dorms after graduating, finding an apartment for them to share as they started the next phase of their lives. Not that it was easy to just move in together.

“Are you ever going to ask me?” Stiles looked up from where he was scouring the net for potential apartments. He looked surprised at her and she sighed.

“Ask you what?” He tried and he knew he said the wrong thing.

“Stiles, we’ve been dating 6 years now, you do know that right?” She pointed out, talking slowly and he tilted his head.

“Yeah, I’m aware of how long we’ve been seeing each other.” She sighed again, getting up from her spot, turning him around in his chair, sitting down in his lap, he tilted his head to look up at her.

“You need to ask me to move in with you” She explained and he huffed a laugh.

“That was the plan, McKayla. You know, after I’ve found a suitable place for us to live in” Her eyebrows furrowed, shocking him with the image of a certain wolf he used to know.

“You were?” She asked and he smiled, leaning up, he pressed a kiss to her lips.

“Yes, you know. I was going to ask you with a key and tour but fine, why don’t you help me pick a place and we can move in together” She laughed, excited, turning them so that she was facing the right way. Looking at the listings.

\--

Stiles’ senior year of med school found him working through offers. His eyebrows furrowed at the letters he had received from places offering him interviews. McKay had gotten in at a top notch firm and had been busy with her first year as associate and she was enjoying it.

“Hun, what’s that?” She looked over his shoulder at the papers scattered around him and he sighed.

“They’ve sent out offers to the senior med students. Jefferson Private sent me an offer, no one gets offers from them, they don’t offer.” Jefferson Private Hospital was an academic hospital and they usually didn’t take first year interns, it wasn’t heard off. Someone must have sent his results and CV to them.

“You got the offer. I didn’t know if it would work” McKay jumped around excited, a twenty six year old woman jumped around their apartment, shouting in glee.

“You sent them my CV and results” He muttered and she nodded, stopping in front of him.

“Yes, of course, because you never would have. You are taking that job, we’re moving to San Francisco and that’s final” And it was final, he accepted the offer, graduating top of his class once again, surprising everyone and himself with how his brain just knew everything it needed to.

That summer he and McKay moved back to the west coast, Stiles nervous with how close San Francisco was to Beacon Hills but he just couldn’t leave it there, he just couldn’t leave an opportunity like that. That summer he had asked McKay to marry him, they had been engaged for so long really but he made it official with the ring and the extravagant date he planned to ask her.

“Took you ten years, idiot” She had laughed and he shook his head, kissing her. He had shocked himself with how truly happy he could be, he had the dream job, he was living with the most amazing girl in the world and he was going to marry her. Things were going great and Stiles was just basking in how amazing he felt for it.

\--

Three months into his residency shit hit the fan. McKay was rushed into the ER when he was on duty along with his mentor, Dr Livingston, he had rushed to help but shocked himself when he saw her, bloodied and shredded and dying.

“Dr Stilinski, problem?” Dr Livingston asked, he was shouting orders, the nurses trying to stop the bleeding but she was shredded, cuts running all over her body, she wasn’t even breathing, a paramedic doing compressions as they tried setting her up.

“She’s my fiancé” He supplied and the older man nodded, rushing them to the OR, Stiles walked behind them, dropping into the room where he could watch the operation. His heart was beating in his throat and he didn’t know what to do. He watched them try to save her life, he watched them peddle her chest six times without any result. He watched them call time of death, sinking down onto his knees, sobs wracking his body. She was dead and something killed her and he wasn’t there to stop it.

He buried his fiancé a week later, his whole world had crashed around him and he knew it was his fault. If he had stayed away and just left her alone, she would be okay. She would be alive and healthy and in no danger. But he loved her and they were going to build a life together. It just seemed that he wouldn’t ever be able to be happy without someone or something trying to ruin it.

He heard of the monster that had killed her a few weeks later, another victim showed up with the same kinds of wounds. The thing was making its way down the state, leaving a string of murders behind it. He tracked it through the state, always just a few towns too late to stop it from doing more harm. He tracked it to Beacon Hills, shocking himself when he drove into the town, the Jeep had been replaced by a new Toyota Rav4, so no one took much notice of him when he pulled up to the diner in town.

He didn’t think people would recognize him, he didn’t exactly keep touch and they disappeared in the night really, he didn’t expect anyone to come up to him, excited to see him. Especially now that he had taken to not sleeping full three hours, much less eight hours. He was sleep deprived and on a mission to end the life of the creature that had ended his. She was always at the back of his mind, always speaking as he drove and followed the trail the creature was leaving behind.

He dropped down into a booth, tired and hungry. He looked up at the waitress as she cheerfully greeted him.

“Good morning, my name is Kelsey and I’ll be your waiter. Would you like to hear the specials?” She asked and he shook his head.

“Can I get a coke and some curly fries and a double bacon cheese burger” He asked and she nodded, jotting down his order, she turned away quickly and he turned his head, staring out of the window. Beacon Hills still looked the same, the people still looked the same and the overall vibe was the same.

“There you go, shout if you need anything else” She dropped his order off maybe ten minutes later and he nodded in thanks. He needed to burn sunlight if he wanted to catch the thing that night. He knew he was right on top of it, he needed to do this, he needed to do this for her, she wouldn’t want it walking around and killing more innocent people.

He stayed just long enough to eat and pay, leaving quickly, he sat in the Toyota, eyes glistening. He missed her, he missed her laugh and her warm touch, he needed her there to keep him steady and focused, he couldn’t go without her. He didn’t know how to live without the person that has stuck with him for the last ten years.

He sighed, dropping his head on the wheel, shoulders shaking as he let the tears drop, he hasn’t really cried since the funeral, the tears were needed, helped him focus on the task at hand. He was just done crying when he heard a tap on the window, he lifted his gaze, finding a very curly, concerned gaze looking back at him.

“Excuse me sir, are you okay?” Isaac asked and Stiles wanted to say he looked different but he really didn’t, he was still soft and fluffy and so tall. Stiles rolled down the window, trying for charming but he knew he was failing.

“Yes, sorry, just got caught up. No worries, Isaac” He smiled, watching as the deputy frowned at him, he watched him try to place Stiles and he saw the moment he was placed.

“Stiles?” He asked and Stiles smirked, he nodded at his old friend.

“The one and only. Nice to see you, Isaac, send my regards to the pack” He was already closing the window when Isaac stopped him.

“What’re you doing back in BH?” Isaac knew what questions to ask. Stiles sighed, rolling the window back down.

“I’m just here on business, I’ll be gone in the morning” He rolled the window back up, he didn’t have the energy or strength to try and catch up with the pack. He didn’t need that in his life, he just needed to find and kill the monster.

He burned the last few hours in a motel room, making sure his equipment was ready for a fight. From the encounters he had read, he was dealing with something very big and very dangerous that liked to claw and attack. He didn’t know what it was and he couldn’t really figure out anything from the eyewitness reports. He knew it didn’t like the sun and light, always attacking in the night in dark places, like parking lots of law firms.

The woods still felt the same as they did ten years ago, they were big and looming and so very dark when Stiles breached the area. Stiles knew it was heading east, the police radio reporting something along those lines. As he walked, he played with his spark, his gaze staying alert, looking for the creature. If he could fight a dragon, he could fight anything.

Movement on the right of his eye stopped him in his tracks, it was looming and black and so very big. The monster spotted him, red eyes dropping down onto him and Stiles pulled everything into him, he needed to kill this thing. He watched as the beast ran to him, it favoured its right side, the left weaker and slow. He watched it move, moves not fluid and rehearsed, it threw its body around without any pattern. The thing relied on strength and from the loud foot falls, he knew it would be quick and so very strong. Stiles dodged the creature, slamming his bat down on its back, the monster hissed but turned around. Okay, a whole lot stronger than what Stiles had anticipated.

He fought the thing for as long as he could, the monster getting in a few key slashes, Stiles knew he was bleeding and he was running out of energy and time and he really should have brought Michael with him when he offered. Stiles watched as the thing lunged again, he jumped out of the way, the monster much slower than Stiles and it was growing tired too, he just needed a few more hits and it would be done, but then so would Stiles be.

He heard them before he saw them, the footfalls loud and fast. The monster had heard too, pausing and giving Stiles a gap to land a few shots, leaving the thing weak. He watched as the wolves rushed around the creature, blocking him in, they attacked it, a few at a time latching and inflicting pain. Stiles watched as he caught his breath, he knew when he needed to get in there. He saw a beta go for the strike and he pulled his magic to the front, pausing him mid action.

“No, this is my kill” He spoke, the monster was laying on the ground, held down by a few other betas, he threw the beta to the side. Taking his bat, lifting it over his head, the creature looking up at him, malice and promise in his eyes but Stiles wouldn’t let it get away with it. He slammed it down on its head, shattering the skull, leaving the clearing silent as he turned to look at the Beacon Hills pack looking back at him.

“Great seeing you guys, really. I’ll be going now” He dropped his blood covered bat over his shoulder, the spikes retracting at the push of a button, he draped his arms over it, walking out of the clearing. It was done, McKay was avenged and he could sleep again now that he knew the danger was gone.

He didn’t make it farther than the clearing when a hand stopped him.

“The alpha wants to talk to you” The beta supplied and Stiles looked at him, he didn’t recognize the man, but then again, the pack could have grown since then.

“That’s great and everything but tell Derek that I’m okay” The beta looked stunned at him, shaking his head.

“He really does want to talk to you” The beta tried again and Stiles shook his head at him.

“It’s not gonna happen. I’m leaving, I have a job to get back to” His leave was ending in a few days and he needed to get back in town and face the apartment and get settled without her around him.

The beta let him leave and he sighed, his body was tired and he just wanted to sleep for sixteen hours straight, he needed it really. Stiles stopped at the Toyota, dropping the bat in its usual place, pulling off the ratty shirt he was wearing, well what was left over of it. He focused his magic, healing his body, leaving him just bloodied. Stiles leaned against the Toyota, just leaning into the sounds of the woods.

“It’s common to accept the alpha’s invitation when he extends one” A voice came from his left, he sighed, dropping his head to look at the man standing in front of him. Derek Hale, in all of his glory, he had aged but like a fine wine, his muscles still there but he had this sureness to him.

“I never did care about common courtesy” Stiles shot back. Dropping into his car, pulling away and driving away, he didn’t need this.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guess who posted again?! Sorry for the wait and now I update with not the best chapter in the entire world... Sorry. It's not the best but it is needed for the storyline. Hope you guys still enjoy it and comment and kudos and subscribe and bookmark if you do! I love hearing from you guys! Thank you for reading and I hope you have a great day/night!

Knocking, he was awakened by knocking, who knocks at a motel, who would bother him at his motel? Stiles sighed, dropping out of the bed, rubbing a hand over his face, opening the door, scowling at the person on the other side.

“Stiles Stilinski, how dare you come into town and not come say hi” He looked at the red head, shook his head, shutting the door and locking the door. Silencing ward over the door and he was ready to sleep again. She wasn’t getting it, not until he was ready for her to get in.

He was just settling in when he saw the handle turn, did she pick the lock? He flicked his wrist, locking it so tightly she wouldn’t be able to get in. He shut his eyes, dropping back into his slumber, he still needed eight hours to catch up with the sleep he missed out on.

Apparently Lydia Martin doesn’t give up, she spent the day camped out in front of his motel room, her car parked next to the Rav4. She jumped up from the hood of her car when he opened the door, ready for the drive back to San Francisco.

“Stiles?” She asked and he turned his gaze, she looked the same as she did when he left, just a lot less frilly.

“Leave Lydia” He muttered, dropping his bag into the trunk of the Rav4, she caged him in at the back of the car, eyes searching and he sighed.

“What do you want?” He caved, folding his arms over his chest. He raised an eyebrow when she didn’t say anything and he sighed, turning around, heading for the drivers side door.

“Why did you leave?” She asked and he stopped, turning to her.

“Because I nearly died and I didn’t want to deal with a war that wasn’t mine to fight. I left because it was the best thing for me to do” He supplied and she frowned.

“But you kept on fighting, you fought last night” She pointed out and he shook his head.

“That wasn’t fighting, that was resolving something” Her frown deepened and he sighed.

“What happened to you Stiles?” She asked and he thought for a second she actually cared about him, about what had happened to him and then he remembered how she didn’t give a damn about him, never did in high school, why would she now?

“I grew up” I shook her off, opening the door, climbing in.

“Scott missed you” She tried and he huffed a laugh.

“I’m sure he did” He slammed the door, starting the car and peeling out of the parking lot. He didn’t need to explain himself to anyone here, they didn’t have a right to the story.

\--

Lydia was shocked at how utterly uncaring Stiles had become. His exterior was hard and tough and she had hoped that he wasn’t like that inside, she hoped that he was the goofy flaily kid from high school. She knew better than to expect something like that.

Lydia was shocked when he opened the door that morning, he was shirtless, tattoos stark against his pale skin, his hair dishevelled. What shocked her more was how she couldn’t get into the room, after picking the lock it was like another force had kept her outside, she had tapped on the door for half an hour before she realized that he simply just couldn’t hear her.

“Derek, yeah, he’s heading out of town” She muttered into the phone, the alpha hanging up. She was left with the few articles she could find on Stiles, a baseball review, he had played Varsity at Harvard, he was a med student, finished last year. She couldn’t find where he was practicing. She couldn’t find where they had moved to and she couldn’t find anything out about his life, it was like he was a ghost, hiding in plain sight.

\--

Stiles wanted to get out of the hell hole of a town as quickly as possible, his knuckles white as he clutched at the steering wheel. He didn’t want to be there, he just needed out. He was on the main road out when a police car pulled him over. He wasn’t even speeding, what the hell? He looked in the rear view mirror, finding Isaac there once again. He sighed, lowering his window.

“Stiles, just come to the pack house, everyone wants to see you” Isaac didn’t even try with pleasantries. He sighed, shaking his head.

“Isaac, what the hell would I need to do there? I don’t really care and I don’t really want to see them. I just needed to sort that thing out, that’s all” Stiles sighed and Isaac’s brows furrowed.

“Why did you need to sort it out?” Isaac asked and Stiles heart clenched, her face flashing behind his closed eyelids as he tried to compose himself.

“It killed my fiancé, I got even” He watched the shock run over Isaac’s face. He knew it was a harsh way to say it, but he didn’t know how to put it lightly that she was mauled to death by a creature she thought she could take on and kill. He’d wanted to talk to her, ask her what she thought when she took it on, well, if she took it on and it didn’t just ambush her.

“If that’s all, I’m going home now” Stiles waited to be stopped, when he wasn’t be pulled away, shaking off Beacon Hills when he finally left the county. Glad that he had gotten his revenge, that he had avenged her and that the creature wouldn’t be able to hurt anyone else. He could go on with his life now, he could go back to his residency, he could live the life she had wanted for them, he just needed to get back and figure out how to live with the person he’s been with the last ten years, the girl that was his everything, that stood with him through everything, held his hand when he got his tattoos, patched him up when he came second against a monster. She was the person who held him close when he wasn’t sure about what they were doing, when he felt unsure about if he was doing the right thing, when his anxiety acted up and he couldn’t get out of his head. She was everything and now, she was nothing.

\--

“Dr Stilinski, you sure you want to do this? We’d understand if you want to take the year off” Dr Livingston sat in his office chair, Stiles always thought he looked a lot like Dr Cox from Scrubs but he was a whole lot nicer to him, maybe because he was the only intern the hospital had.

“I need to just be normal, to just get back in my routine. Get my mind off of what happened.” Stiles ran a hand through his hair, shaking his head. He knew Livingston was sizing him up, analyzing him, making sure that this was for the best, making sure that he could go back and help and not be a threat to the people he was trying to help.

“Okay, but on one condition. You step back when it gets too much, you let someone else take over when you can’t handle everything. You’re a brilliant doctor and we don’t need you to be lost to this” Livingston levelled Stiles with a look, Stiles nodded, he knew it would take time, time to make peace with what happened, make peace with how she was lost and that revenge just wasn’t enough to make himself feel okay with it. He needed to go on and live but it would take a while to do that.

\--

“You know, you could always come home, there’s a hospital in the Hamptons too” John Stilinski sat on his couch, he had been back at work for a week now, he was  bone tired, his days were long and a few times he just couldn’t get his hands to work with him. It was hard but it was getting easier.

“No, I don’t want to go back, I need to stay here, need to just… be” Stiles shook his head, he was busy in the kitchen, the only place where he still looked and acted like his old, sixteen year old self. He was spastic and busy and so very messy in the kitchen, food spatters everywhere. His dad watched, fond smile on his face, he liked that Stiles was still the same when he looked so different.

“Are you sure? You should be with people who can help you through this time. If you come home you’ll have me and Michael to be with you while you heal” John tried again and Stiles stopped, mid stir, turning to his dad.

“I’m sure, I have a job here at one of the best hospitals in the country, I have the best neurosurgeon in the country as my mentor and I have friends at the hospital, I may not be fine now, but I’ll be. It’ll take some time, a whole lot of time, but I’ll be fine.” Stiles watched his dad nod, he could see the worry in his eyes, the way he looked at Stiles like he would break down at any second. Sometimes Stiles felt like he would, but he just couldn’t.

“Well, you know there’s always a place for you back home, if you want it” Stiles nodded, smiling to his dad.

“I know dad, thanks” They left it there, Stiles finishing the food and serving it. They spent the night packing up some of her things, her clothes in the closet, her things in the bathroom. Stiles needed his dad there, to help him when he cried as he held the dress she said yes in, or when he couldn’t throw out her bottle of perfume, the one she always wore when they went out on dates, she never really loved it but he did.

It was draining and he knew maybe too early to do it, but to move on like he wanted to, he needed to rip the Band-Aid off. It hurt, so much, and Stiles didn’t think he would ever feel okay, but he knew that if his dad could get up and shake himself off from his own mothers’ death, then maybe he would be fine.

\--

Stiles spent his time healing in a very strange loop. He spent his days and nights working at the hospital but he also spent it fighting between everything that harmed people. At that point he had adopted the Hunters code: We hunt those who hunt us. He didn’t think he would ever be a hunter, didn’t think he would go out searching for the monsters that hurt people but he didn’t like spending time in his apartment, didn’t like how empty his home felt.

“You know, people have this thing, where they sleep when they’re tired” Livingston pointed out one morning, Stiles had spent the night fighting against pixies and didn’t get home until an hour before he had to get into work, he showered and then got ready, Adderall helping him through his shift.

“Yeah, I know, I couldn’t sleep last night” He shrugged, it wasn’t too bad, Stiles hadn’t slept full eight hours, ever, more like four to six, six when he was lucky.

“You should go home, you’ve taken too many shifts in any case, get some sleep” Livingston levelled him with a look that Stiles’ swore he got from his father. Sighing, Stiles nodded.

“Are you sure?” Livingston nodded, Stiles smiling in thanks, he really wouldn’t mind a day off, to just catch up on sleep and everything else he needed to do.

Stiles headed home, lost in his thoughts as he walked the distance between the hospital and his apartment. Unlocking the door, he dropped his keys in the bowl at the door while kicking off his shoes, rolling his shoulders while he walked to the room, he stripped down to his boxers, dropping down onto the bed, sleep taking him a few seconds later.

-

He wakes up to pounding, loud insistent pounding, which sounded like it was against his door. Stiles tried drowning out the sound but he couldn’t find the energy to do it, sighing he got up, opening the door in his dishevelled state.

“Yeah?” He rubbed at his eyes, looking up at the figure that loomed in his door.

“Derek?” He tried again when he saw the dark haired man. He watched, shocked, as Derek pushed through the door, stepping into the apartment. Stiles closed the door behind them, really not know what to do about his new guest.

“You’re the guy in the red hoodie everyone is talking about, right?” Derek asked, Stiles was shocked that the man had talked, and so many word in sequence was even weirder. Stiles eyed the hoodie that was strewn over the couch, Derek picking it up, wrinkling his nose at the odour, he didn’t have the time to wash it after every battle, even he knew it was stinky.

“Right. Derek, mind telling me why you’re in San Francisco, in my home?” Stiles took the hoodie from his hands, dropping it back on the couch.

“We need your help. There’s a group of witches that took control of a pack of mixed were-creatures, the witches did something to the pack and they shift into monster sized things that they usually shift into. We can’t seem to fight them off, one of my betas was killed a few days ago and the rest aren’t doing that great.” Derek explained, gaze steady and Stiles cocked his head.

“That sucks but I can’t really just drop off the earth and go fight a bewitched pack. I have a job, a very important job by the way, saving lives. I’ve used up all my days trying to catch that thing that killed McKay.” He turned around, scratching at his stomach, realizing he was just in his boxers, grabbing a pair of sweats from the laundry pile.

“I know, Dr. Stilinski, only first year intern at Jefferson Academic Hospital. Lydia did her research on you, she had to dig very deep to find that information. But I also know that you’ve been hunting monsters that kill people since your Harvard years. Lydia found rumours of ‘the boy in the red hoodie’ on every kind of supernatural forum out there, we’ve known about you since your junior year of college. We just didn’t know it was you until you came back and fought that thing in the red hoodie with a bat that fit the description people posted.” Stiles lifted an eyebrow, shocked that Derek said so much and then shocked that news of him was circulating around the states.

“Yeah, okay, I fight bad monsters in my free time. Derek I would help if I could but I have a shift starting at two tomorrow morning, can’t really ask another intern to fill in for me.” Stiles started the kettle, taking out two cups.

“Stiles, if we don’t kill the witches and help that pack, they could cause some serious damage” Derek tried again and Stiles nodded, sighing he pulled his laptop, that was on the kitchen counter, to him, opening it.

“Okay, I have a few things I know that could help. If you give me an email, I’ll forward it but that’s about all I can do for you.” He started attaching the files he had on witches, mind control, monster shifts and how to free people of spells.

“That’ll help, I’ll put it in” Stiles nodded, shifting away from the laptop, giving Derek the space he needed while he poured the coffee.

“You know, we all missed you, worried about what happened to you and your dad.” Derek mumbled, Stiles pausing as he stirred, he closed his eyes, trying to gather strength.

“That’s great, really but I needed to get out and I like what happened to my life after I left.” Stiles placed the coffee next to Derek, taking a sip as he leaned against the counter.

“You moved to the Hamptons, right?”

“Yeah, dad took over from the Sheriff that retired.” Derek leaned against the kitchen island, levelling Stiles with a glance.

“What happened to you?” Derek asked and Stiles shrugged, he knew he looked different, he knew he wasn’t the kid that left Beacon Hills.

“When we got to Beacon Hills, I had to do physical therapy, had to learn how to use everything again. I figured out I was good at baseball, figured out I was good at surfing and then figured out I was good at fighting. I made varsity senior year, graduated valedictorian and went to Harvard for pre-med and then again for medical school. I graduated summa cum laude.” Derek furrowed his brows, shaking his head.

“I didn’t want your CV, I want to know what happened to you” Stiles shook his head, this wasn’t what he needed or wanted.

“Derek, I could tell you everything that happened, how I got to be like this but I just don’t see how you are entitled to that information. We’re not friends, we weren’t even friends back then. I was the spastic kid that irritated you, I was Scott’s friend that always tagged along. I’m okay with that but this thing where you guys think I would ever go back, I’m not okay with that. I’m trying to build a life here, one where I have to live with the fact that my fiancé was killed by a monster and that the person I’ve loved the last ten years just isn’t around anymore. Why can’t you guys just leave me alone?” Stiles shouted, angry and hurt, tears threatening and his voice catching.

“Because we let you leave once and we’re not going to let that happen again. Stiles, you weren’t just the irritating best friend of the beta, you were a vital part of everything. You were the glue that held us together, after you left we just fell apart. We almost lost everything and we did, for a very long time. Stiles, you’ve lost so much because of the world we put you into, you could use some people to help you through it” Derek spoke loudly, full of conviction, face determined as he looked Stiles in the eye.

“I ran away and you guys didn’t even try to look for me. You dropped me off at the hospital but then never showed up again. If you guys just showed up and showed that you cared about me then, when I needed you the most, I would have stayed but you didn’t.” He wiped at the tears that had escaped him, shaking his head.

“We tried, Lydia looked for months but she just couldn’t find you. We thought you guys left the states. We also wanted to come visit, we did, but things just never worked out for us to go and we tried to protect you, we knew that whatever was after us wouldn’t stop to go after you even if you were in the hospital. That talon snake thing was part of a group, there were ten of them around town. When we finally killed the last of them, you were gone” Derek explained, voice softer this time. Derek had grown into being an alpha, he wasn’t so silent now, he spoke with conviction and authority, he demanded your attention and he had Stiles’.

“We could go on for days about this, but the fact is, I was hurt and I did the best thing for me and my dad and I healed.” Stiles placed his cup in the sink, turning back to look at Derek.

“Derek, it was great seeing you, but I think you should go now. Good luck with the bewitched monster pack, sure you’ll be fine” He took the cup from Derek, starting to push him out of the door.

“Stiles, really, we just want to help” Derek stopped, turning around and Stiles sighed.

“You just want my help, I gave it. Now leave or I’ll make you leave” Stiles flashed his eyes, Derek’s own eyes widening but he let Stiles shove him out of the door.

“Really, Derek, just email or call me the next time you need my help, but I’ll do you one better. I’ll FedEx Lydia my research” He slammed the door shut, locking it, leaning against the door for a second to catch his breath, to slow his heartbeat.

\--

He looked so different. Derek couldn’t get over how different he looked, how different he really was. He had known Stiles was different that night in the clearing but it was dark and he couldn’t really make out the details of Stiles’ face, much less how much he grew up.

In Derek’s head, Stiles was still the scrawny sixteen year old that couldn’t control his limbs, he still had his razor cut hair and didn’t really ever shut up. But this Stiles, the one he just spoke to was so different, he really couldn’t get another word for it. He was shocked when Stiles had answered the door, shocked by the lithe, strong body that had defined muscles, shocked by the ink that wrapped around his left arm, the whole sleeve bleeding onto his chest where he had words in Latin, he didn’t know what they meant but he wanted to know. He was shocked with the age and wisdom locked into his eyes. He had changed so much and yet he didn’t change that much, he still chewed on his lip, still twitched, like he was always ready for something to happen. He just looked like he had settled into himself, his ADHD was just more muted now.

Derek now understood why Isaac and Lydia had been so shocked when they had walked into the pack house, going on about Stiles. Isaac had been so shocked when he got off shift, he jumped into a story of how he found Stiles outside of the diner, well he didn’t know it was Stiles until he talked to him, he said he was buff and full of tattoos and they thought Isaac had lost it, why would Stiles be back? They were even more shocked when they found him fighting the monster they had spotted in Beacon Hills, more shocked when he had killed it, Liam saying he was stopped mid action in the air, Stiles swooping in and killing it himself. Liam went on and on about the bat, spikes and wolfs bane infused apparently.

When he had talked to Stiles, he didn’t really think to look closely, didn’t think to pay attention, he had just wanted to get him to go home with them, to see the pack. Lydia had tried the same, camping outside of the motel room. Her conversation didn’t go any better with him than theirs, she had said that some of his tattoos, the ones she could see, were runes, Celtic ruins apparently, but he had a whole sleeve full of them and she couldn’t get a very good look.

But Stiles was hurt, who wouldn’t be after the loss he had suffered. Derek knew how it felt to lose the person you loved but when he lost Paige, they had been together for six months, he didn’t want to know how it felt to lose someone you loved for 10 years. The pain had to be crippling but Stiles was on his feet, working, saving lives and living in the place where she had lived with him. He could smell her in there, in the couch cushions, in the rug, in the walls, she was everywhere, as she should have been but Stiles didn’t even have that comfort around him, he just had her possessions he had kept, the pictures and the memories.

He knew Stiles didn’t want their help, but he would eventually need them. And this time, when they were needed they would be there for him, not like the last times, when he had been there for them but they hadn’t been there for him.


	6. Chapter 6

“Stiles where did you get that Beastiary?” He had answered the phone, mid shift but on a coffee break. He looked down at the caller ID, the number unknown to his phone. He sighed, placing his cup down.

“Lydia, great of you to call, really. I’m working at the moment, I’ll have to call you back” He went to disconnect the call but she didn’t let him.

“Stiles! Wait!” He brought it back up to his ear, she sounded panicked and he worried, a small part worried but a part still worried and that was a part he didn’t ever think he still had in him.

“Yeah?” He waited and he could hear her sigh.

“I know you’re busy, we are too, I need to know if there's something in the beastiary that takes virgin sacrifices and then  slaughters them and scalps them?” She asked and Stiles thought through the extensive book.

“Try looking under Darachs but usually they don’t scalp people. It could be a shaman that’s looking to do something, they usually die with a nice bullet to the scull. It should be one of those” He sure as hell hoped that no one could hear him talk at that moment, he’d lose his licence if they heard him talk about Darachs and Shaman.

“Darach or Shaman? Anything else?” She asked and he tried thinking once again.

“Okay, I’m sure you’ve noticed this, but you can just search scalping and virgin sacrifices and you’d find something that matches up in the beastiary” He hoped she had figured it out or they were in a lot more trouble than he thought they were.

“I haven’t really gotten the time to play with the program, I’ve been busy” She spoke through the line, Stiles noticing Livingston coming through the break room door, tapping his watch.

“Yeah, sorry, got to go. Good luck with that” He ended the call, forgetting about it when Livingston handed him a file of a girl that had been in an acident, she had swelling on the brain and they needed to operate.

\--

He got calls like that at least once a month, Lydia or Derek or Isaac, calling for help with their monster problems. Most of the times he could help them, he could tell them what they were facing, sometimes even he couldn’t tell them but he could point them to someone that might know.

He had just gotten off from work, he was bone tired, triple shifts weren’t something to play around with, especially when there was a ten car pileup. Stiles was busy getting his keys from his backpack while he walked down the corridor. He looked up from his pack, keys in hand, well until he dropped them. Tan skin, black hair and a crooked jaw stared back at him, a nervous smile on his face. Of everyone he didn’t want to see, Scott was at the top of his list, he didn’t want to see the best friend he left behind to fight alone.

“Scott?” Stiles was still taken aback at the appearance, still shocked at how completely the same Scott looked.

“Hey man, sorry to just show up here, I would’ve called but you didn’t answer” Stiles patted his pocket, tapping the screen when he had it in his hands but it didn’t light up like it should have.

“Sorry, it must’ve died while I was busy, triple shifts” He stepped to the door, unlocking it, leaving it opened for Scott to follow him inside.

“You want a beer or something?” He dropped his things at the door, going to the kitchen. He could hear Scott do the same.

“Beer is fine” Stiles grabbed them both a beer, leading him to sit on the couch and things got silent after that, awkward really. But what could you say to the best friend you didn’t even say goodbye to?

“Did you guys need help with a monster? He tried for the most obvious and Scott shook his head.

“No, we’re fine. I actually came over to tell you about the pack” Scott took a sip of his beer, looking at Stiles, seeing how he would react.

“Why?” Stiles was tired, he was so tired and Scott being here made him more tired, like he wasn’t able to function with how tired he was.

“I want you to know about the people who care about you. I want you to know about how amazing Lydia is, and how kickass Erica is and how much Boyd loves her. I want you to know about the new members and what we had to go through to get them where they are now. I want you to know that there's people who care about you, even after all these years of radio silence” Scott spoke so passionately that it took Stiles by surprise.

“I have a feeling I won’t be able to stop you” Stiles sighed, if that was one thing he remembered about Scott it was how damn hard headed he became, especially when he got that tone of voice.

“I’m married, if you were wondering. Been for the last four years, you don’t know her, her name’s Kira, she transferred junior year. She’s amazing, really, she’s a history teacher like her dad. I’m a vet, Deaton’s partner actually. Allison is with Isaac now, they’re happy too, married and they have a little girl, Marlie, she has major curly hair. Allison is a weapons specialist, she works with the FBI and the CIA and Isaac when they get cases together. Danny is serious with an alpha that moved to Beacon Hills, he was part of the alpha pack. Danny’s an IT genius, like he was back then, he just legally hacks now, does work for the feds too, a whole lot of us do that. Erica and Boyd sticked together, like we knew they would, they got married right out of school, Erica became a teacher at the special school, helps kids that have the same problem as she did, Boyd took over the rink and has a few other stores in town, he won business man of the year the last three years. Lydia is professor at Beacon Hills University, people love her there and Parrish, the deputy that helped a whole fucking lot even when he didn’t know what was going on, he loves her, thinks the world of her, he’s the new Sherriff, one of the youngest Beacon Hills has ever had. We have a few new members too but not much, Liam and Hayden and Mason joined later when Derek saved Liam’s life after he got attacked by a wendigo on a roof, he had to bite him to stop him from falling off of the roof. Hayden joined a few months later and Mason is his Stiles’. Malia is Peter’s daughter, she’s got quite the back story, novel worthy really. We’ve grown into a really strong pack but for a while there, we weren’t a pack. We almost got killed, we have lost people, like when Derek showed up here, we lost Josh and almost lost Boyd and Ethan but your research saved their asses. Stiles you may have left and don’t need us, but we need you.” Stiles stared at Scott, it was so much information to take in, he felt happy that all of them had found people they loved and were starting lives together and building a big, healthy pack.

“That’s great that you guys moved on and that the pack is as strong as ever. But really Scott, that beastiary I sent to Lydia is really the only way I could help you guys. I’m not that useful after that” Stiles had learn very early on how to lie to Scott, how to tell him something that sounded like the truth, if he believed it his heart wouldn’t jump and Scott wouldn’t be able to pick it up. The talent had come in handy quite a few times when faced with packs.

“Bullshit, we’ve heard the stories about you, The Boy in the Red Hood, the supernatural world shits itself every time your name comes up. Derek has won pack disputes just by fucking mentioning you and saying that we know you, we’ve sent people running just by having someone walk in a red hoodie around the woods. You are so much more than research. Look at you, you’ve got muscles and tattoos, Lydia says they’re magical, and I swear one of them moved when you walked. Liam swears you stopped him in the air when he was going for the kill. You were useful back then and you are useful now, Stiles, the pack lost everything when you left” Scott looked so damn determined, he was sitting on the edge of the couch, eager to convince Stiles that they knew how amazing he was. Stiles just didn’t really care.

“Scott, I told Derek this and I’ll tell you this. I am not going back, I’m sorry but I’m just not. I have the ONLY residency in the best hospital in the country and I’m not giving it up for a group of people that wouldn’t even visit me in the hospital when I needed them. Scott, I just need to get my life back to normal, I lost the most important person in my life and I couldn’t do a thing to stop it. Going back to Beacon Hills will just hurt me more and you guys need to understand that.” Stiles was so tired, tired that they wouldn’t just leave him the hell alone, he didn’t need this in his life on top of everything else that had happened. If they wouldn’t leave him alone, he may have to take his dad up on the offer of going home, Hamptons Hospital was still a great facility.

“I know you lost her, I’m sorry you did but going back could just be what you need, give you a purpose after losing her.” Scott tried and Stiles shot up from the couch, suddenly very angry.

“I have a purpose, I’m saving people everyday, I save lives, Scott. I just got off a triple shift and now I have to argue with someone who thinks they’re my friend about the lack of purpose in my life. Scott, you don’t know me anymore, I’m not the kid that left Beacon Hills, I’ll never be him again and thank every single god for that because I was an idiot that almost got killed and people didn’t fucking care if I was human or not at that point, just that I could save their asses. I’m trying to pull myself back together and it’s hard enough without you guys coming in and thinking you know what’s best for someone you don’t know.” Stiles was fuming, he could feel his spark igniting in his eyes, he knew they were shining bright and gold, he knew his fingers twitched as he tried to still his magic under his skin.

“I think you should go” Stiles muttered, heading over to the door, watching Scott follow him, he turned to Stiles at the door, shaking his head.

“We’re not the same people as back then either, we’d just really like to get to know you as you are now and we’d like you to know us. That’s all we’re really trying here, just trying to get you to come back” Scott tried one last time and Stiles shook his head, he didn’t need this, he slammed the door behind him, locking it, taking a deep breath before heading to his room, showering, setting his alarm before dropping off into a dreamless sleep.

\--

The calls stopped after that, he didn’t hear anything from the Beacon Hills pack and he was so happy about it, relieved that they finally listened to him. He was finally getting his life back on board.

He was once again on ER duty, he was in his first year as resident and was taking patients on privately, Livingston only going through his files as he worked, telling him if he thought Stiles could use the guidance, he still assisted in the OR but that would still be going on for a while before he would be able to do a solo.

The night wasn’t busy and they were working with a skeleton crew for the few hours between two and four the morning, they knew those hours weren’t too full of accidents, rather people coming in with alcohol related problems. Stiles had just finished attaching someone to an IV when he saw someone crashing through the doors, rushing at the nurse at the front desk. She looked up startled and Stiles was making his way over, ready to take over if need be.

“Get Stiles” The man shouted and Stiles eyes widened, Derek. He rushed over, slipping into doctor mode, an alpha at a hospital wasn’t good news, especially is those wolfsbane veins had anything to do with it.

“Judy, I’ve got him, I’ll call if I need help” He pushed Derek into a wheelchair the nurse had brought him, she looked ready to go with him but she needed to stay at her station. When she nodded, Stiles rushed Derek down the hall, he knew which room he stored his stash of things, the room a little further away and for good reason too.

“Tell me what happened” He ordered, helping Derek onto the bed, hands grabbing the bag in the bedside table, he grabbed his gloves, waiting for Derek to talk as he cut Derek’s shirt open. Hello abs. Stiles, focus. He found the bullet wound in his side, just under his ribs, he prodded at it, he was right, wolfsbane and it was one of the rarer strains.

“Was walking down town, just finished talking to the local alphas, there were footsteps behind me, didn’t think much of it until the person pressed a gun to my back. They pushed me into an alley, didn’t say anything but ‘filthy wolves’ and then shot me. Left right after that” Stiles nodded, rummaging through his bag, finding the bottle with the strain he needed.

“You know the drill, this is going to hurt like a bitch” Stiles took the dish on his tray, dropping the dust in there, setting it on fire before he took the tongs, hand steady as he dug around the hole, removing the bullet and dropping the ash into his wound, pressing them deep into the wound, assuring that the wound would heal fully.

“You got good at that” Derek muttered before he passed out. Stiles sighed, pulling off his gloves, wiping the sweat from his head, staring at the wound as it healed completely. Imagine the amount of people they could save if everyone could heal like that, McKay would still be there if only she could’ve healed that quickly.

He closed the door behind him, Derek would be out for a while, he’d go back when his shift ended. He dropped by the front desk, Judy waiting for him.

“He didn’t fill out a patient form” She nodded to the clipboard and Stiles shook his head.

“It’s fine, he’s a friend of mine, he just scratched himself but he’s drunk so he thought he was dying, I patched him up with my own things and he’s just sleeping it off in the break room” She liked Stiles, he was lucky for that, luckily most people liked him and let him get away with things like not booking in patients.

“I had a friend that always asked for an IV when she didn’t want to have a hangover, she wouldn’t leave until I gave her one.” Judy shared and Stiles chuckled, shaking his head with her.

“Friends, what would we do without them?”

Stiles spent the rest of his shift reading at the front desk, the night had died down and wouldn’t be starting up until five when everyone would be getting back. Stiles smiled at Martinez, the doctor who was taking over from him, before rushing down the hallway, that room needed to be cleared out, pronto.

“Derek, up, we’re going” Stiles poked at him and the alpha dropped out of the bed, wobbly on his feet as Stiles quickly made the bed, taking his bag and Derek. He made Derek pull on a shirt that he got with his scrubs, pulling the man out of the hospital.

“Where’s your car?” Stiles asked, Derek looked up at the parking lot, shoving his hand in his pocket, revealing keys, pressed a button. Lights of an FJ cruiser lit up and Stiles pulled Derek along with him.

“You need to drive, I can’t” Derek shoved the keys into his hands and Stiles nodded, seemed like he would have an alpha on his hands for another few hours. They took the short trip to the apartment, Stiles parking in the empty spot next to his own car, helping Derek up to his apartment, dropping him off on his couch.

“Do you need me to call someone?” He asked and Derek nodded.

“Tell Scott I’m fine, need to be back in Beacon Hills before tonight, there’s something headed our way, need to prepare” Derek muttered, he didn’t make all that much sense but that was what Stiles picked up from the mumbled words. Stiles grabbed the phone Derek had offered, typing out a text to Scott.

To: Scott

Spent night in San Fran, prepare pack for imminent threat. Will be back tonight

He deemed that close enough, switching the phone to silent and leaving the man to sleep it off for a while. He wouldn’t mind his own four hour REM cycle, he closed his curtains and dropped into the bed after a shower, the alarm set for four hours from then, he would wake Derek up and send him on his way before he got back to the remaining two he would need to function.

He startled awake, his alarm vibrating on his pillow. He sighed, getting up, he had a night shift why was he awake before three in the afternoon? He dropped out of bed, rubbing a hand over his face, he stopped in front of Derek, the man was snoring on his couch, nose twitching before he settled again. Looks like the alpha was losing his edge.

“Time to get up Sourwolf” He nudged at Derek’s shoulder, the man started awake, arms flailing, teeth bared. Stiles watched amused as Derek righted himself, his red eyes the last to fade as he woke up completely.

“Stiles?” He sounded so confused, the wolfsbane had a stronger effect than he had anticipated, he should make a note of how long it put a werewolf out, should take the strain and paint a layer over his bat, could be useful.

“You need to get up, you said you needed to get back to help the pack stop something that was headed your way” Stiles stepped into the kitchen, starting the coffee machine.

“Did I tell you what it was? Because I can’t remember” Derek pulled at the scrubs shirt he was wearing, frown on his face. Stiles sighed, grabbing a black Henley from his pile of clean laundry, handing it to the man.

“No, just said the alpha meeting was last night and that they gave you a tip on whatever it was. You could just call one of them, explain what happened and make sure about the threat” Stiles poured himself a cup, lifting an eyebrow in question to Derek, he nodded. Stiles poured another, watching as Derek pulled out his phone, pressing a few buttons before he started talking.

Stiles tuned him out, starting on lunch/breakfast, while he was awake he might as well eat. Derek talked while he prepared the food, plating the food as Derek sat down.

“Sorted?” Stiles asked and Derek nodded, smiling in thanks as he dug into the food.

“Yeah, Scott’s got the pack ready for a fight, Lydia’s mad because she couldn’t prepare yet, she’s better now that I told her that it’s harpies” Stiles nodded, harpies were a bitch to fight.

“Harpies don’t like silver, they don’t react to the usual wolfbane, mountain ash, mistletoe but silver makes them shrivel up and die” Stiles told him, Derek stopping mid bite, looking up at Stiles.

“How do you know that?” Stiles shrugged.

“Freshman year of med school, we had a few of them in the park. It’s actually a whole lot of fun to fight them, McKay played tennis with them” Stiles smiled at the memory, she had been so badass, she’d hit them and he’d stab them as they came his way, they had made quite the team.

“You could come with, you know, fight with us against them” Derek offered and Stiles shook his head.

“Yeah, sorry, no. I have a shift again tonight. And in any case I think I may be done fighting, I haven’t really gotten around to it the last few weeks.” He shrugged, taking a bite of his bacon, Derek was looking at him like it was the first time he really looked at Stiles, like it was the first time he was seeing him.

“That’s fine but we could use you around sometimes. We know you’re busy being a doctor and everything but we would love to have you around.” They were wearing him down, they knew they were and he needed to just cut ties, like the last time he left but he couldn’t leave San Francisco, he couldn’t leave the life behind he had built after her death, she wouldn’t want him to get sucked in, she knew what it would do to him and he knew that she wouldn’t want him to go back.

“You should get on the road if you want to be back by night fall.” Stiles grabbed the plates, loading them into the dishwasher, he listened as Derek gathered his things.

“Stiles, you still have a place in the pack, we never could fill it” He heard the door open and close and he let the breath go he didn’t know he was holding. He was too strong to cry like this, he knew he wanted to go back, but he knew what it would do to him, what it would mean.

\--

“Stiles, I was a lot like you when I was younger” Stiles looked at Dr Livingston, lifting his eyebrow at the older man.

“Yes, okay, you must think I sound insane but I’ve been keeping an eye on you, like a mentor should. I see how you treat people that get wounds that would normally kill people, I’ve seen how you take a dying patient and cure them, how they walk out the next morning like nothing happened. Like the alpha you helped a few weeks ago, you know, the Hale Alpha” Stiles felt his blood run cold and he stared at the doctor, he didn’t know how to react to what he just said. He looked around the office, leg shaking, he couldn’t keep still.

“Stiles, it’s fine. I’ve known about you since you started med school, there’s a reason you’re the only resident, I made sure you got it. I’m in a league with Deaton, druids and emissaries to packs usually, I don’t do that kind of work but I was trained, I still know what to do and how to spot someone like you. Deaton talked about you when you still lived in Beacon Hills, said he hasn’t seen or heard of a spark in hundreds of years. He asked me to keep an ear to the ground, I found you at Harvard, got excited when I heard about what you were doing and that you were top of your class, made getting you here a lot easier.” Livingston seemed relaxed, like he was telling a fairy tale to a group of kids, not shocking someone by telling them about their own secret.

“It’s such a pity about McKay, wish we could have saved her, would have saved you a whole lot of fucking pain. I heard about her too, she was a fierce fighter, a real loss. But Stiles, you’ve been away from that pack for too long, they need you, they’re surviving but they’re not living and thriving, you need to go back” Stiles shook his head, his mentor was losing it.

“I left Beacon Hills and that pack for a reason, I needed to get away, needed to not fight their war. I almost died and I left for a reason” Stiles tried reasoning and the man shook his head.

“It all had to happen to get you to this point. You may have left that war behind but you found your own at Harvard, you fought for yourself there, you grew there, you learnt how to use everything you had, you grew into the warrior they needed and now you’re so much more than we ever thought you would be. Stiles, it’s time to go back and help that pack”

“But what about everything here, I love it here at Jefferson, my schedule won’t be better at Beacon Hills Memorial, I won’t be able to fight while I practice medicine” Stiles pointed out and Livingston pulled a bag out from under the table.

“You won’t while you practice human medicine, that’s completely true. But supernatural medicine is something else, there’s a whole lot more to the world than just what you see in front of you. Stiles you’ve been treating people who’ve come looking for you, you’ve been a doctor to the supernatural for a while now and you know it. Settle yourself in Beacon Hills, open a practice there, we’ll spread the word and you’ll make a living like that, you’ll still help and you’ll be with the pack. Everything is there, it’s waiting for you, you just need to pack up and go”

“So you’re telling me that I just have to go back, help the pack and practice medicine but just help the supernatural too?” Stiles was so shocked and Livingston nodded, he pushed the bag over to him and Stiles took it, opening it and finding small bottles full of things that helped anything and everything.

“Everything is ready, we’re just waiting for you to go. Stiles, you have to do this”

“What if I don’t want to? What if I just stay here and practice human medicine and just ignore everything?” Stiles tried, his heart was beating in his throat.

“You won’t just stay, you’ve been trying to figure out a way to do just what I’ve told you to. I’ve already signed everything, you’re a full fledged doctor and you’re all set to practice there. Go pack up and go”

“What if I screw everything up?” He felt small and fragile and so unsure of what was going on with his own life.

“If you do, you’ve got a pack that’ll carry you through it. They’ve lost you once, they sure as hell won’t lose you again”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now that was a very long wait for this... Sorry about that. Life got busy but I finally got a new laptop, everything will be back to normal (I hope). I hope this chapter makes up for the wait but I'm sure you guys will have some things to say about it, let me know what you thought. Let me know what you think is gonna happen... I love reading your thoughts. If you did like it, comment and kudos and bookmark and subscribe, it would make writing this just that much more fun!


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, thank you so much for all the sweet comments and encouragements, it means the world to me, really! I hope you guys like this chapter, I don't know how to feel about it but I feel bad for making you wait so long for it, so let me know what you thought. I hope you have a lovely day/night/week!!

It took a lot of him to walk away from the life he had tried to build in San Francisco. It took a lot to explain to his dad what he was doing, what he was risking but needed to do apparently, people depended on him, needed him and they were just waiting for him to start. He resigned from the hospital, packed up the apartment, breaking lease and paying the fine and headed to Beacon Hills.

Deaton and Livingston really did set up everything, they had given him two addresses, one for his new home, the other for the practice. He moved into the small three bedroom house, it had felt empty but the place was nice and already furnished so he just needed to settle. The practice was much of the same, it had two rooms, one for normal patients, the other for the supernatural. The place was dusty but it had everything he needed and would need to start up.

That night he laid in bed, questioning every decision that had led up to that point. He was back in a town that he swore he would never come back to and now here he was, starting a life there without really knowing if it would work or not.

\--

The diner seemed like the easiest option for him, the early morning air was chilly as he stepped out of the Rav4 and walked into the diner. The place was packed, a perky waitress showing him to his table.

“Aren’t you our new doctor in town?” The girl asked and Stiles was taken aback, he hadn’t even set out notices at the hospital or anything.

“Yes, I am” She smiled, eyes bright.

“It sure is nice to have a good looking young doctor in town, Dr Thompson is well passed his expiry date. People will be lining up at your door when you open up” Stiles didn’t really know what to say to the girl but she smiled.

“Any way, could I get you a cup of coffee?” She asked and he smiled, relieved that she had jumped off of her topic.

“Yes, thank you. I’ll take a full farm style breakfast too, eggs sunny side up with brown bread and the bacon crispy” She nodded, taking note of everything before she left to go give his order in.

He was staring out of the window, lost in thought about what he would need to do to get the practice open as soon as possible, when he heard the chair across from his scrape against the floor, his eyes finding a very happy blonde across from him.

“Batman, it sure is nice to see you in town” Erica, wow, she sure was a sight to behold. The woman in front of him looked like a softer version of the girl Stiles new in school. Her blonde hair was shorter now, a nice lob that framed her face, her makeup done softly, she had on a blouse that didn’t show any cleavage and yet it still looked seductive.

“Erica, you look great” He tried and she flipped her hair.

“Yes, of course I do, you look good too. Love the whole badass life saver, works for you. What’s got you in town?” He knew he liked her for a reason, she didn’t care about what had happened, or she didn’t make it known, but she just seemed genuinely interested.

“Actually, I moved into town yesterday, starting up a practice here with the help of a few people that insisted I come back.” He watched the shock run through her, she looked around the room before turning back to him.

“I’m sorry, it sounded like you said you moved back” She tried and he nodded, she shrieked, pulling him across the table into the most awkward hug ever. She let go of him when his food arrived, the girl pouring Erica’s coffee and then took her order.

“Boyd isn’t around yet, still at the market” The waitress said and Erica nodded.

“Thanks, I’ll just wait for him” The waitress nodded and Erica turned to him.

“The pack is going to go crazy with the news. Oh I know, why don’t you come to pack night tonight, everyone will be there and you can meet the new recruits and everyone can catch up. You have to come” He had a hard time saying no to her back in school, he didn’t think he could really say no to her now.

“Sure, write down the address for me and I’ll see you guys there.” She stopped again, mid sip.

“What?” He asked at her shocked expression, she frowned at him and he felt uncomfortable under her gaze.

“I’m sorry, it’s just I thought you wouldn’t want to come. We know you haven’t been our biggest fans, we’ve done some real shit stuff to you, really we understand why you don’t want to have something to do with us. Hence why I’m so shocked that you said yes” She looked at her hands as she spoke and he reached across the table, placing his own over hers.

“Erica, shit happened and things aren’t going to be easy and like they were back then. I’m not the same person as back then, and it doesn’t stop at the outside appearance. I came back because you guys kept wanting me to come back and someone I looked up explained to me that sometimes things happen for a reason and coming back might just be the thing I need. Packs are great for helping you put yourself back together” Stiles shrugged, taking a bite of his food and she stared at him.

“Stiles, it really is great that you’re back. We’ve missed the shit out of you” She laughed and he smiled in return, after that they talked as she waited for Boyd to make his appearance. She told him about how Boyd was the owner of the diner, the ice skating rink, the bowling alley and a club in town that wasn’t a gay club. They were doing good, were busy trying to get pregnant.

“I thought you guys would already have a small person running around” Stiles commented, honestly from the bunch he would have thought she and Boyd would be the first to have kids.

“We almost did a few years back, I got attacked by a rogue and I lost the baby. We haven’t really tried again after that, didn’t think we were ready yet but we think now’s the time” She smiled but he could see the sad pull at the side of her mouth and how her eyes didn’t shine like they had during the rest of the conversation. He laid his hand on her, sending positive energy to her through his spark, her posture lightening.

“That’s a nice trick you’ve got there” She nodded and he shrugged.

“You guys have your special talents, I have mine.” He didn’t stay long after that, heading to the practice to start on sorting through everything as the cleaning crew cleaned the offices, making a list as he worked of everything he needed and would have to order in.  He didn’t want to go to the pack get together, he didn’t want to face the people he was trying so hard to push away just to let them fall back into his life when he stopped pushing, he didn’t know what he would tell them, how he would interact with them. He didn’t know how to feel about the situation but Livingston had insisted that he get back with the pack, to form a bond with them again, he needed it (apparently) and so did they.

He went back home after sorting through everything for the practice, his orders were placed and paid for by his very generous friends. He took a shower when he got home, washing away the dust of the offices, he felt better after the shower, getting dressed in his jeans and a red and white baseball shirt, he grabbed his coat and got into the car. He stared at the wheel, once again wondering what he was doing with his life. But then he heard Livingston’s voice in his head, ‘you need them and they need you’, and he was right, he could use people around him that helped him when he felt down, when the memories of her got too bad.

Parking outside of the house on the preserve was surreal, the last time he had been there it was still just a burnt out husk. It looked odd with its looming three storeys, the house painted white and it had shutters, blue painted shutters and the house had a porch with a porch swing. It looked so completely normal that Stiles wondered if he had the right house, that maybe he just drove out to the preserve out of routine and memory and nothing else and that the pack meeting was somewhere else in town, but the seven cars parked outside was a dead giveaway.

He didn’t know how he got to the door, or how he knocked but he was happy he had the guts to knock before he ran away. The door opened, Erica smiling at him from inside the house.

“Hi! I’m so glad you made it.” She smiled, pulling him into the house, hand on his shirt and he went along with her.

“Erica! Who’s at the door?” Someone shouted from deeper in the house and Erica looked over her shoulder, mischievous smile on her face.

“Just the new doctor” She shouted back, still leading him through the house.

“Who?” Someone else asked and Erica sighed, they had entered the room but everyone was facing away from them and she sighed again, louder this time.

“If you’d turn around, you’d see” Thirteen heads turned to look at him and suddenly he felt like his awkward teenage self again, he timidly waved at the pack in front of him, the shocked looks on their faces gave away their surprise and Stiles felt unsure about his decision to be there. But that quickly went out the window when he was tackled in a hug, he laughed when Scott picked him up. And suddenly everything was okay again.

“Scott, put me down” He laughed, patting Scott on his shoulder, the man settling him on the ground again, turning him to look at the rest of the pack.

“You have to meet my wife” Scott pulled him to a small Asian woman, she had a friendly air about her, Stiles felt the electricity jump around her, the current surprising his spark.

“Stiles meet Kira” Stiles watched the proud smile on Scott’s face, he could see how fond Scott was of Kira and he could see how the look was returned.

“Nice to meet you. You’re a thunder kitsune, right?” He could see the surprise on her face, he turned to the rest of the people in the room, all of them looking at him in surprise. Well he was getting that look a whole lot.

“Yeah, how’d you know that?” She asked and he shrugged.

“My spark reacted with the current you give off.” Her eyebrows furrowed but she shrugged it off. Apparently they weren’t used to people figuring out what they were just by shaking their hands. Scott pulled him around the room, introducing him to the newest members of the pack, greeting the ones he already knew.

“Does your spark react with everyone or only a select few species of supernatural?” Lydia enquired later in the evening, she was sitting next to the young Sheriff as they talked.

“Most species, the spark picks up on things you normally won’t.” She turned her head, like she was assessing what he was saying, trying to figure out how he worked.

“How do you know? Not everyone gives off currents, right?” Stiles shrugged, it was one of the aspects of the spark he didn’t really question, he usually just went with his gut, the spark gave him a feeling and he tried to match it with the knowledge he had built up.

“I haven’t really asked it Lydia, it usually just gives me a feeling.” She shook her head, already dismissing his magic and he laughed, of course she wouldn’t believe him. She was a woman who believed in science and she needed proof to believe in it.

“You don’t have to believe me but remember, there really isn’t a formula to being supernatural” She frowned at him, shaking her head.

“She’s going to try and prove you wrong” Parrish said, he looked fondly at the red head, Stiles laughed, getting up from where he was sitting.

“I’m sure she will. Lydia start with the probability that a werewolf baby would be born from a turned werewolf / human pairing, that could be helpful in a pack” He could see the cogs turning in her head. He found himself in the kitchen after that, grabbing another beer from the fridge.

“It’s good to have you back” He jumped at the voice at his back, almost dropping the beer he had grabbed. He turned around, staring down Derek.

“Why would you do that?” Derek looked like he was going to laugh but was doing a very poor job at trying to hide the fact.

“I didn’t think I could sneak up on you without even trying” Derek commented, levelling Stiles with his eyebrows, he didn’t think someone could do that but Derek sure as hell could.

“Usually you wouldn’t be able to, guess I’m not on my guard here” He opened the beer, leaning against the counter, trying to level Derek with a look but failing miserably.

“It’s good that you feel that way. Really, Stiles, you’re always welcome at the pack house. But what changed your mind to move back?” Derek leaned against the opposite counter, arms crossed over his chest, Stiles couldn’t help but look at the muscles that was bulging through his shirt.

“To be completely honest, Livingston and Deaton were the reason. Livingston, my mentor at Jefferson, is a druid who knows Deaton, they’ve been keeping an eye on me and they insisted that moving back would be the best thing for me and for the pack. They gave me the practice in town to make sure that I wouldn’t be able to back out of it and to be frank, I like it” He took a sip from the beer, keeping his eyes on Derek, looking at the way he moved, his shoulders weren’t so tightly wound as Stiles remembers them. He looks relaxed, eyes light green in the light of the kitchen, Stiles could hear the pack in the living room, laughing and talking and Stiles felt his own shoulders go lax at the feeling of pack.

For so long he only had his dad and then McKay joined their small little pack, and he thought he could live with it, for a while it did feel like it would be enough. But he always missed this feeling, the feeling of everyone around them, their own currents working through him, he hadn’t understood what it was in the beginning but now when he knew so much about himself and the power that pulsed through him, he knew that the bigger the pack around him, the stronger he could be. It was true, if the pack was strong, the individual would be too.

“Well we’re glad you’re back, for a while there we weren’t sure you would ever forgive us for what happened” Derek leaned against the counter, eyes level with Stiles’.

“Derek, for everyone involved here, I hope you guys look after each other like a pack should, when I laid in that hospital bed, not sure if I would ever leave, you guys didn’t come to see if I would, it’s a horrible feeling when the people you would die for, don’t even show up when you’re dying for them to help you through it.” Stiles saw the guilt flash in Derek’s eyes, could see how he dropped his gaze and Stiles was shocked when he didn’t feel satisfied with hurting Derek like he thought he would. For a long time, Stiles just wanted to hurt the pack, make them feel how he felt, but now that he finally could, he just wasn’t liking it.

“I know you guys regret it and feel guilty for it and it wasn’t the best time for the pack and people did get hurt and died and I was almost one of them but I know you’ve gotten better at this, gotten better at taking care of the people who you now consider family. Derek, protect this, you and I both know how it feels when you lose your family.” He pushed passed Derek, back into the living room where everyone cheered when he came back, all of them rushing to tell stories of their adventures. He felt warm, filled with the pack’s energy, alive with it, he listened and laughed and smiled with them, eyes drawn to the alpha sitting in the corner of the room, content look on his face, but fierce protectiveness hiding behind them.

\--

It takes time to get settled, the new house foreign and quiet, the office much of the same. The supplies take some time to get to him and he has to make do with what he has around him when a wood nymph falls through the back door, breathing hard and bleeding, scaring Stiles into action. The nymph got caught in a hunters trap, he broke free but not before hurting himself on the mountain ash spikes that lined the walls of the trap.

It takes Stiles a few seconds to gather himself, he’d been studying up what to do and what not to do when treating different types of supernatural creatures. They were always so much like humans but some things you wouldn’t use on the supernatural that you would use on humans, and the other way around. It takes him seconds to gather the information that’s needed for him to treat the wood nymph, the little guy passed out on the table when he finally fixes the wounds. He sits back, monitoring the nymph, positive that he was healing, slowly but surely. He had to admit, it wasn’t the same kind of rush as back at the hospital, it was better, he felt better helping the beings that weren’t used to help, he liked the shocked sigh as his medication helped. It eased the feeling in his chest, the anxiety that keeps asking if it was the right thing to move back.

He eased back into Beacon Hills like he eased into cold pools, going slowly and on his toes, going back if it got too cold for him, he didn’t like to admit that he felt overwhelmed and unsure and like the pack expected too damn much too damn early into recovering from everything that happened. He knew they knew where he lived, he’s heard them outside his door, knocking, he knew they knew he was inside, hiding from them. He couldn’t just dive back in, he tried, felt like he was betraying his old self, felt like he was hurting himself more than he would have liked to admit and he needed time, a whole lot more than what they were giving him and he wished he could just pack up and run, just not look back.

He’s sat with the application forms for Doctors without Borders open, heart in his throat, he felt lost and he didn’t know what to do to keep him afloat. He didn’t feel very sure in himself, but after looking at the healed nymph he supposed things could have gone a lot worse. The nymph had thanked him, saying that he was indebted to him, that the wood nymphs would always be willing to help the spark if need be. A favour would be repaid.

When the supplies show up at his offices, he finds himself with an up and running practice, the receptionist a young mage, her hair bright pink one day, muted lavender the next. But she knew what to do with a mixed clientele and that’s all Stiles really could ask from a receptionist.

Two weeks after moving back, Stiles’ practice was open and he was already seeing patients, people just getting checkups to see the new doctor, mothers with children that needed to be checked, the mothers muttering that the other doctor in town couldn’t even see the children, much less diagnose them. He tried hiding his laugh at that, he had known the other doctor, the man had been practicing medicine as long as he and his father had been alive, as far as he knew, the man had helped in the birthing progress of his own father and that was saying something.

He fell into the monotone of his practice, treating whoever walked through the door, if they were human or supernatural really didn’t matter to him, as long as they got better after seeing Stiles, he couldn’t really complain. The practice was thriving, the other doctor in town had written him a letter a week into working as a doctor in town, the man thanking Stiles for showing up, saying he could finally retire and would like Stiles to be his physician when he needed one. Stiles readily agreed and life went on.

The pack finally learnt to give him his space, they quickly learnt that Stiles would come to them if he needed them or wanted to speak to them, he would easily take days before he talked to any of the pack, his life busy with sick people but he liked to at least talk to someone from the pack once a week, he didn’t like the fact that he found himself reaching out to Derek first out of all of them. But he found the quiet calmness of the alpha soothing, like he didn’t have any expectations to meet when he talked to the man, like Derek was taking the time to get to know the new  Stiles, the one who fought the supernatural at Harvard and harnessed his spark for good and used it like an extension of himself, like he was supposed to. It was like Derek didn’t think of him as the old Stiles, but as a new person to get to know.

“You know you can talk to the rest of the pack, right?” Derek asked one evening as Stiles stood in front of his door again, he knew the house was empty, he knew the pack had their own things to tend to and he found he liked the quiet time with only Derek around to keep him company.

“I’m aware of that, at the moment it’s just easier to talk to you. You get that I’m not flaily, spaz Stiles and that I’m not the same person as before and that I don’t exactly like to reminisce about the past here in Beacon Hills. You ask questions about Harvard and the spark and how I’m doing and I get to do the same and you don’t mind. I just hate how they only seem to like the old me, not the me I am now” Stiles took a deep shuddering breath after he spoke his mind. Derek looked him over, the man nodding at Stiles, like he understood exactly what he was going through and maybe he did to some extent and knew why he did the things he did and why he acted around people the way he did.

“Stiles you may have changed a whole lot, you’re definitely not the same person you were back then but you’re still you at the core, I know your anxiety flares when you think about the practice and the people you need to help, I know how it makes you nervous when the pack is here. But you reacted the same way back then too, you just weren’t so sure in yourself back then. You grew up and they did too but they grew up together without you, in their minds they only know teenage Stiles and they haven’t figured out how to process this new Stiles that kicks ass but also heals it” Stiles will never be used to a Derek that talked so much, a Derek that readily gave an opinion and talked about things he didn’t even know Derek had any interest in. He didn’t think he would ever get used to the Derek that could make jokes and laugh along with them when he found sound something funny.

“I just wish they could figure out, it’d be a whole lot easier for me to just not talk about the past” Stiles muttered and Derek sighed.

“Then tell them, next pack night, just tell them you would like them to just get to know you for who you are now, you’d like them to push old Stiles to the back of their memories and just get to know you, you’d like to do the same with them. And the reason it’s easier to talk to me now is because we didn’t really know each other before, sure we fought and we knew each other but I definitely didn’t know you like Scott did and that’s why its easier for you to talk to me, you know I don’t have a reference of the previous you to compare it to.”

“You’re good at this whole leading the pack and being alpha thing, you have great insight and you give sound advice. I’ll give this therapy session a solid 9 out of 10” Derek sighs exasperatedly at Stiles, his face shifting back to the scowl of his teenage years that left Stiles in a laughing mess.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I KNOW! So sorry I disappeared and didn't post for so long but life got busy and I was in my senior year of university. But that's done and I'm back, (I hope). Hope you guys like the chapter, tell me what you thought about it! Love talking about it with you guys!!! Thanks for reading!

It takes a whole lot of courage to talk to the pack at the next pack night. It takes him a few tries to actually stand up from his spot and to talk to them.

“Okay, I’m going to say this once because I’m actually quite tired of trying to avoid conversations with you guys and I’d like to actually get to know the people you’ve become and what you’ve done but I can’t do that with you guys constantly talking to me like I’m the same Stiles I was back then. I changed and you changed and I’d like us to get to know each other like that because I am sick and tired of all this other crap. Forget everything from before and stop trying to make up for something that just isn’t going to get fixed. We can work from here on forward, I know you’re sorry about what happened and I know that now, things were said but if you want to get back to me being part of the pack, we’ll go from here. And if I hear one of you say Boy in the Red Hood again, I am going to go full spark on you. Okay?” The pack stared at him with big eyes and he turned to Derek, hoping to find some sort of assurance that he had done the right thing.

“That’s okay Stiles, we can do that but speaking of sparks, what can you do exactly?” Lydia ignored everything else, wine glass in her hand as she spoke to Stiles, he felt relieved when the rest of the pack nodded and he sat back down, the alpha patting his shoulder as he passed behind the couch on his way to the kitchen.

“Uhm, the thing with a spark is that the more we believe in our powers and the more we work on them the stronger they grow and we grow with them, so it isn’t limited to a single set of actions. I believe in my power and what it can do and I know that we are strong, that’s why I can do so much with it. I believe that it will cover my bat and make me strong, I believe that it helps me move things and I know that I can move big and small things, as long as I think I can move it, it will be moved. Like I know I can silence you, I know I can fly too but that takes some practise too and I know that I can beat anyone.”

“So you’re telling me, if you think it and you believe it, you can do it?” Lydia asked again and he nodded, her eyes narrowed and she turned to look around the room and then back at Stiles.

“Show me it” She commanded and Stiles furrowed his brows.

“Like make a physical embodiment of the spark?” She nodded and Stiles shrugged, he hasn’t actually done that before, sure he has played with it, made the spark move like Wanda Maximoff did in the Avengers Movies but he hasn’t actually given it a form. He closed his eyes, reaching down into himself, feeling the spark move through him, he could feel the little tendrils reacting to everyone in the room, he could feel it where it was coming out of his heart and he could feel as it poured out of his hands, the blue of his power bright as it poured onto the ground and formed a shape. He didn’t know what shape the spark would take, he didn’t know what it would mean if he could give the spark a separate form but he was excited at the prospect.

He watched in awe, with the rest of the pack, as the spark took its form, the blue forming a great big fox, the creature had nine tails and it looked a whole lot like a pokemon and patronus had merged into one form. He loved how strong and big it was and how it stood proud in the middle of Derek’s living room.

“You’re a fox spirit?” Kira asked shocked and Stiles looked up from the spark to find her. He shrugged and looked back at the spark.

“I doubt that this is the only form, let me see.” Stiles reached out to the spark and the energy moved towards him and stopped in front of him. Stiles thought of a big wolf and the spark shifted taking on the form that Stiles had chosen.

“Nope, just whatever I need it to be” Stiles let his hand run over the head of the wolf and then pulled the spark back into him, felt the energy settling again.

“That’s amazing” Lydia whispered, the rest of the pack nodded and Stiles laughed, shaking his head as he got up.

“That’s the first time I’ve ever done that, thanks for the idea Lyds” She smiled.

“Did it look like a patronus to anyone else?” Scott asked and suddenly the whole pack was saying they thought the same thing and then they started talking about what their own patronus would be if they could ever conjure ones themselves. Stiles removed him from the conversation after everyone determined that he would be able to change his like he could now. He stepped around them, heading to the kitchen, finding Derek in the doorway, leaning against the doorframe.

“That really was amazing, I didn’t know you were that strong” Derek said as Stiles paused next to him, Stiles smiled, he liked the praise, it was new and he didn’t think Derek would be the one to give it but yet he was.

“Thank you, and thanks for the advice on talking to them. I think it’ll be better from now on” Stiles sighed, it felt good to have this problem resolved. He was tired of going back into the past, he just wanted to move forward from here, he knew McKay wouldn’t have wanted him to move back in the start but this change was something that made him actually feel better after her death, like maybe he could move forward and know that she would be happy for him.

\--

Things settled after that, he felt more open to going to the pack house, even when he knew someone else was going to be there. He actually enjoyed his time there when someone else was around and he got to catch up with them. Things were going good, finally.

“Is it just me or has it been quiet on the supernatural front?” Stiles wanted to stand up and choke Liam as the words dropped out of his mouth. He sighed as he dropped his head onto the counter where he was sitting with his laptop open, the forums he was a part of was saying the same thing and he didn’t like it when it was quiet, quiet was when something was brewing or something bigger was coming that was keeping the little things at bay.

“You just had to say it, didn’t you?” Stiles tapped him over the head as the beta passed him, the young man growling at him. They still had to find common ground and it was hard to do for Stiles when he constantly wanted to smack the beta over the head for doing and saying stupid things.

“What now?” Derek asked as he stepped into the kitchen and Liam shrugged, like he didn’t just jinx the hell out of them.

“He just jinxed us, asked why it was so quiet on the supernatural front. He just sent that out into the world. You don’t know what it is to send something out there, the world likes to fuck a person up for questioning it” Stiles ran a hand through his hair, he really needed to cut it soon but it seems like he won’t have much time in the future for that now.

“Are you serious? I just asked if you noticed” Liam was busy rummaging through the pantry and Derek sighed, walking over and checking Liam upside the head too.

“I’ve told you not to question the quiet, every time you do that, something happens” Derek scolded, turning around to watch Stiles as he typed on his laptop.

“You think you can undo that or are we screwed?” Derek asked and Stiles shook his head.

“I can’t undo things like that, hopefully nothing and nobody heard and we don’t get something. We’ll just have to hope and see and I’ll do some more protection wards, just in case” Stiles got up from his seat, closing the laptop and pulling his bag closer, grabbing his things that he needed to make the pack house safer. Nobody would be getting into his house, nothing would be able to get close to it without getting the shit fried out of it.

\--

A week, it took a week for Liam’s words to hit home. Stiles was busy with a wood nymph again when he felt the world around him ripple, the wood nymph paused too, listening as the world around them shifted.

“You felt that right?” Stiles asked as the world settled again, he felt the goose bumps running up his arm and the hairs stood up at the back of his neck.

“Great evil has entered to woods” The nymph spoke solemnly, the little green eyes looked up at him and Stiles stepped back, he was done with the treatment but didn’t feel quite safe knowing where he was sending the wood nymph.

“Pack land is the safest at the moment, move your family there for the time being, we will move from there. Tell anyone you see that it would be best to stay out of the woods if possible or to stay close to the house” Stiles instructed the nymph as he helped it to the ground and it nodded, thanking Stiles as he ran through the door.

Stiles pulled out his phone, dialling Derek as he walked to the front office where Arielle, the mage was looking with big eyes to the street, she turned to him as he entered the room.

“I felt it too, close up shop and get home, the best protection spells you have, use them. Quickly” He ordered and she quickly got up, locking the front doors, the spells and mountain ash taking as the locks slipped into place.

“Stiles, what the hell is going on?” Derek asked as he answered the phone, he could hear the pack in the background. Someone saying he could hear movement outside in the woods.

“Something entered the woods, a wood nymph was with me while it happened, he spoke of a great evil. I’m at the practice and I’ll be heading to the house in a few minutes but I need you guys not to attack the creatures outside, I told the nymph to bring everyone to the house. I want you to open the back barn for them, they’ll be safest there” Stiles grabbed his things, his medical bag in tow as he locked up behind him and Arielle. She was in her car as he locked the last of the doors, the protection spell taking full effect. He waved as he jumped into the RAV4 and started the car. It was late afternoon and he needed to get to the house before sunset.

“I’ll do that, what else?” Derek asked and Stiles thought for a second.

“Make sure everyone is in the house, I don’t need us to be split up for this. When I reach the preserve I’m sending the spark out to look” Stiles was thankful that he had started training that aspect of the spark, the figure he conjured could be used now to go look for things that were too dangerous to go look for in person, Stiles could see what the spark saw and he could act with the spark too.

“Okay, we’re just waiting for you and Parrish and Isaac to get home.”

“Great, I’ll see you in a few” Stiles ended the call, thankful that the practice wasn’t too far away from the preserve. When he entered to dirt road he could feel the unrest in the woods, he could feel everyone heading for the same place and he could hear the small footfalls of the nymphs as they all headed to the house. As he parked in the garage of the house, he sent out his spark, the bird inconspicuous and unnoticeable as it flew out into the high canopy of the woods. He kept some of his focus on it and the rest on getting into the house.

“Great, you’re here. The nymphs don’t want to listen to Derek, they say the spark will protect them” Stiles nodded at Scott as he stepped through the door.

“At the back door” Scott said again and Stiles quickly made his way there, he could feel the spark as it flew through the trees, finding nothing so far.

“Here he is” Derek sighed as he stepped into the space next to Derek, the two nymphs that stood on the back porch were nervous, he could see their eyes darting back and forth from the woods.

“Hi, we should get those families of yours into the barn, the protection spells will only help if the building I’m protecting isn’t the woods. So, gather everyone into the barn” Stiles nodded to the nymphs and they nodded back. He watched as they ran back to the edge of the woods where they pulled their families toward the barn that Liam and Hayden were keeping open for them.

Stiles felt as the spark flew over the creature, his whole body going rigid as he felt the power through his spark. Stiles clutching at the door frame and Derek as he stopped the spark and landed it in the tree above the creature.

“Pen and paper, now” Stiles ordered, but when Derek tried to move, he wouldn’t let go of the steadiness he had there. It took a second but he got handed a book and pencil, he took in every detail of the creature. He could feel the pure evil power that radiated off of it, the black smoke around it chocking him. The spark lifted into the air, trying to get a better view, Stiles shrinking it so that it was just a small dragon fly so that the creature wouldn’t notice the blue of his power. He sketched what he saw in the greatest detail, trying to capture anything so that they could defeat it before it started doing harm.

The dragon fly settling into the highest of the branches, Stiles felt the power shift again as the creature started walking again. He could feel as it walked, the earth moving and it left coldness in its wake.

“Beacon Hills, you will be a feast” The monster spoke and Stiles pulled the spark back, cutting off the visual, it was like he knew Stiles was watching, like he didn’t care.

He dropped the pencil when the spark settled into his chest again, his whole body dropping against the strong chest behind him, his legs giving out from beneath him.

“Lydia, start researching that.” Derek ordered and the notebook was taken away, she read out loud the things Stiles could see and the pack started working through everything they had.

Derek lifted Stiles onto the counter, handing him a cup of tea that someone had prepared for him. Stiles took a few sips before handing it back and resting his head on the chest in front of him.

“What are we dealing with here?” Derek asked and Stiles shook at the thought, his spark shaking with him and he knew that was something, his spark never shook, it was always strong and unafraid of the things they fought, but he could feel how scared he was.

“This isn’t going to end well” Stiles whispered and he felt Derek tense.

“What happened?” Derek tried again and Stiles took a deep breath, pulling away from Derek, hand going to his sleeve, his fingers rubbing at his tattoos. He’ll need a few new ones for this.

“I sent the spark out, it found it at the west edges of the woods, but everything felt so cold and the thing was giving off smoke. I could feel it sucking energy from the world around it, it spoke as it started leaving. It said something. It said “Beacon Hills, you will be a feast”.” Stiles took a sip of the tea once again, eyes watching the woods.

“It knew I was there, the spark was a dragon fly and it still knew I was there” Stiles whispered and Derek paled.

“Fucking Liam”

\--

Stiles hasn’t really been scared of something since he started using his spark. Since then there wasn’t a thing that was stronger than him, there wasn’t a thing that could make him question if he was strong enough to ever defeat them. He always just knew that he would be okay, that he would be able to defeat whatever was coming his way. He was always so damn sure of himself.

But this, he didn’t quite know about this.

\--

In the days that the thing had entered Beacon Hills, there had been murders every day. Each more gruesome than the first. The creature didn’t seem to care how they died, just that they would die with a look of pure horror on their faces. Stiles had seen the photos when Isaac and Parrish had worked on the case at the Hale house, the current head quarters for finding and destroying that thing.

But that was easier said than done, it didn’t seem to stick to one place for very long and Stiles’ spark couldn’t seem to find the creature again after that first time. He shouldn’t have been happy with that development but thinking about how the air had felt around the thing had made Stiles never want to leave the Hale House.

Everyone was on high alert when they left the preserve to go into town, it was a lot harder to fight something when appearances had to be kept, when they all had lives to uphold and jobs to keep. People were still getting sick and needed help, the town was starting to get scared with the amount of people getting attacked, people shouting “Mass Murder” when they talked about the murders.

The worst thing about it all was how random the killings were, how it just took the closest life to him and didn’t care who or what it was. It just killed because it enjoyed it, it didn’t even take anything from the bodies, just their lives. It took without needing and that scared Stiles the most.

They had people searching high and low, through every single source they could find to figure out what it was. To see if they could get a way to kill it, hell, finding it could help at the moment.

“Thank you, please call if you think you found something” Stiles sighed into his phone, thanking the witch on the other line.

“Merida couldn’t help, she hasn’t heard of anything like it, said she’d call if any of her friends could shed some light” Stiles placed his phone back on the counter, hands rubbing at his eyes before lifting again to look at Derek. The house was a mess, people coming and going at odd times, research lying around, Lydia sitting in the middle of it as she searched and talked to everyone she could get in touch with.

“Shit, any one else you know that could help?” Derek asked, placing a cup of coffee in front of Stiles, Stiles dropping into the chair at the counter and sighing.

“Merida isn’t someone I just call for shits and giggles, she’s a witch and a fucking strong one at that. She doesn’t usually take my calls to begin with, she felt the unrest and she’s in Europe at the moment” Derek took a long drink from his own cup, nodding.

“Okay, so we have a very big, very dangerous, very deadly creature stalking our streets” Derek declares and it’s sad to say that that’s the only thing they know about it.

\--

The death toll raises as the days pass, people dying in rows, some nights it two or three people and it’s starting to drive Stiles insane. “This is getting bad, it’s killed almost twenty people and we’re no closer to killing it” Stiles stands in front of the crime board in the living room, the victim’s photos up on the board. None of them have anything in common with each other, old and young, male and female of all races and hair colours and professions are on the board and they are getting more by the day.

“What about trying to find it again?” Isaac asks, he has big circles under his eyes and Parrish doesn’t look any better, none of them do. Stiles nods, he sits down on the couch, Derek sitting down next to him, anchoring him when he places his hand on his back. Stiles nods his thanks and Derek nods in return, they’ve done this enough times now to know what works best.

Stiles closes his eyes as he sends the little piece of spark out into the world, he tries thinking about the cold feeling he felt the first time, he tries to picture the smoke that flew up from it and he stills as the spark finds something. He finds it at the edge of town, he hears the screams and sees the woman trying to run away and he snaps back to reality.

“Killing at the edge of town, at the old Rylander building” He says to Isaac and he relays it through his radio as a sighting and then they are out of there, Stiles wants to follow but when he stands his legs give out from under him and Derek helps him up, hands on his shoulders as he catches Stiles’ eyes.

“You stay here, we need to have eyes on it, get back there and tell Lydia if it moves.” Derek orders and Stiles nods, watching as the Alpha flies out the door behind his betas and then he is alone in the house with Lydia, she sits down next to him and anchors him as he goes back to the feeling and to the creature.

\--

 


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Would an apology even help? Sorry for this very very late update! I just kind of forget about it when school gets very busy. I hope this helps for the wait and I'll try to remember about this or I'll have to shorten this a whole lot but it just wouldnt feel right, would it?

It’s a lot worse when he returns to the scene, the woman from before is busy being shredded to pieces, Stiles stills as he listens, trying to hear if she’s alive still. He sighs when he doesn’t hear her shouting or breathing, better she isn’t alive to feel that, better she’s already gone. The creature throws her to the ground, standing back up onto its hind legs and it tilts it head as if listening. Stiles has already shrunk his spark to the size of a fly, it wouldn’t know he was there, it shouldn’t know he was there.

The creature shakes its head and it makes a sound like it’s laughing. Stiles watches in awe as the creature shifts, as it changes its form and shifts to that of a normal person, a young man. He watches as the young man walks down the street and through the buildings, like nothing happened, like he hadn’t just killed an innocent human.

“Shape shifter” He whispers to Lydia, trying to keep his concentration on the thing as it walks down the street.

“Going down 33rd, male, brown hair, average build, blue jacket” He relays to Lydia and he hears her repeat it down the radio to Parrish. He watches as the police cars surround the thing, he tenses when they get out of the cars, surrounding the creature. He watches as it does nothing as Parrish pushes it down and handcuffs it with silver cuffs. The man hissing, smoke rising from his wrists and Stiles sighs. He watches as they shove him into a truck, and then as they rush off with him to the station.

“They have him” He sighs as he switches back to the Hale living room, Lydia sighs and she looks expectantly at him.

“Grab the silver daggers and ropes and a whole lot of mountain ash. Start with the basics. I’m going to get my strength back.” Lydia nods as she goes to the armoury in the house, bags in tow as Stiles heads to the kitchen, he needs food and a whole lot of it at the moment. The materializing of his spark required a whole lot of energy and he needed to refill if he was taking that thing on at this very moment.

Lydia joins him in the kitchen maybe five minutes later, Stiles taking the pizza he was currently devouring and follows her out the door. She has a lead foot and has them at the station in less that ten minutes which is impressive because its almost a twenty five minute ride on a good day.

Parrish meets them at the back door and ushers them through as they make their way down the hallways to holding. Stiles stills when he sees the creature staring at them through the cell, its eyes are unsettling and he feels scared once again.

“Ah yes, the spark” The creature talks and Stiles narrows his eyes at the creature.

“Good, you’ve heard of me, then you know what I’m going to do to you now” He grabs the bag from Lydia, slowly getting his things out. Dropping the ash over the creature in a circle and stepping up to the bars, he wasn’t getting into the same room/cell as that thing until he knows what he’s up against.

“I have heard about the strong spark that runs with wolves, the rumours didn’t mention the rest of the pack and what a variety you all are” Its voice was chilling, the room cold and it sent shivers up his spine as he settled with his bag on the stool they placed there for him. The thing was held back by chains in the walls and the mountain ash but Stiles wasn’t so sure about how effective it really would be in the end. If he could get some answers then he’d feel better.

“Let’s see, you’re definitely something but what are you?” The thing smirked and he heard Lydia take a step back from where she was standing at his shoulder. The banshee was sensing something and he didn’t like how scared she came off.

“I am what you fear, I am the darkness, I am the cold, I am the night and all its creatures” Stiles wanted to scoff at the words but he couldn’t get himself to move at the power of the voices that spoke, not one but many spoke and it felt like it went through him.

“I am not of your world. I have come to this world to feed and destroy and a spark is a good place to start” He heard the smirk in the voices now and Stiles shook himself to snap out of it, he looked down at his bag and shrugged, pulling out his silver daggers, looking up at the creature for any reaction. He found none.

“Great to know, Smoky. If you are not from this world, from where are you?” Stiles tried, sticking with the knife in his hands, he would see how much he could get from the thing without having to do anything like torture or kill it.

“I am from far, I am from near, I am from a world much like yours, dying and at it’s end.” Stiles nodded and he knew Lydia was making note of everything being said.

“Are you from an alternate universe?” Stiles tried and the thing smirked.

“Your world has yet to meet my kind” The thing replied and Stiles’ whole body froze at the idea, more of them, a whole race. He was sent here to pillage and kill and destroy so that his people could take over.

“You should go back to where you came from” Stiles let his spark filter through into his own voice, his whole body singing with the mad power under his skin. He didn’t get a reply, the thing staring him down with its human face, he turned to Lydia and she was pale, fear evident in her eyes.

“We should see how we can kill it. His people are not welcome on earth and they will not meet my leader” Stiles crossed his arms over his chest, the knife still in his hand, with a flick of his wrist the knife flew through the bars and wedged itself into the chest of the creature. It looked down and shook his head.

“You are causing me an inconvenience” The creature said and Stiles felt his blood boil, his eyes bored and Stiles didn’t know what to do, silver usually killed the creature of the week, if it wasn’t the silver it was the wounds but it was a reliable weapon and could usually get the job done. He sighed, looking down at his bag, herbs and weapons staring back at him.

“What are you?” Stiles tried again and the creature smirked again.

“I am Rugario” Stiles nodded, surprised that he got an answer so quickly and without any problem really. Lydia gasped at his side and Stiles looked up at her, her eyes wide and filled with horror and the creature laughed.

“The banshee knows what is coming” The creature laughed and the chill ran down Stiles’ spine. The laugh sounded through the room, the lights flickering above them and Lydia screamed next to him. When he blinked Rugario was gone.

“Lydia!” He jumped up and the rest of the pack rushed through the door, eyes wide with fear as they looked around the empty cell and the fallen Lydia. Stiles held her up as she opened her eyes again, fear evident in her features.

“So much bloodshed” She whispered, dropping her head back again and Stiles looked up at the group, he didn’t know what to do, he didn’t know what to say. So many words were spoken but there really wasn’t much said if he was honest. Parrish took Lydia from his arms, going to put her in his office as the rest of the pack figured things out.

“What happened?” Derek asked and Stiles didn’t really know where to begin.

“Rugario, it said it’s name was Rugario and that he wasn’t of this world, came here to destroy ours as they had destroyed theirs. It spoke of more coming and laughed when Lydia knew what he was stalking about, she must of seen something. It laughed and then vanished, it’s gone.” Stiles shook with the feelings the creature had left him with, he didn’t know what to do with the knowledge.

“Rugario? Have you ever heard of something like that?” Derek asked and Stiles shook his head, he wasn’t all knowing, he didn’t know of everything in the world much less that there were worlds that he didn’t know of. He couldn’t begin to fathom what it meant and what he would do to stop Rugario and it’s people.

“We should call everyone and anyone, start asking about alternate universes and other worlds and Rugario. We need to stop this.” Stiles tried standing up from the chair they had him sitting in, but his legs wouldn’t work.

“You need to rest, you had a long day. We’ll call and see if we can get any information on Rugario and where it may come from. Someone is bound to know” Derek ordered, eyes lifting from Stiles to the rest of the pack, all of them nodding, leaving the room and Derek helped Stiles stand.

“Come on, you need rest” Stiles tried to argue but his eyes were heavy and at this point he knew that he would be of more use if he was well rested.

“Fine but there better be pizza when I wake up” Derek chuckled and Stiles liked the sound, he didn’t hear it all too often but it was a sound he liked and would like to hear more of.

\--

He awoke to pizza but no news. When he stepped down from one of the guest bedrooms he had made his own in this hunt, he found tired looking faces.

“Nothing?” He asked as he plopped down next to Scott, the crooked jawed man sighed and shook his head.

“Nothing about Rugario or alternate worlds. The closest we have is a book in archaic Latin but you and Lydia have been asleep and we can’t read it” Scott gestured to a tome that was lying across the table, Stiles making a gimmie motion, the book travelling to him through pack hands before dropping in front of him.

“ _The Encyclopaedia of Alternate Worlds and their Creatures”_ Stiles read on the front cover, he never really learnt the old language but his spark liked to translate things for him.

 _“_ This sounds promising” Stiles nodded,taking another bite of his pizza before opening the book. The pages were old and thin and the ink was faded in places, the thing was maybe as old as the Latin language and that was saying something.

“Where did you get it?” He asked and Scott shrugged.

“It was delivered, the package just said you owe them” Merida, she came through. He would have to hear what favour he owed her when this was all over. Stiles nodded, eyes returning to the pages in front of him, there wasn’t an index and he would have to work the thousand page book through page for page, to make sure he didn’t miss a thing.

\--

It takes days for him to gather everything the book has to say about the Rugario and its people. In those days it kills more people and causes havoc when it just walks into a store and kills everyone in it. Stiles hates that it takes so long for him to gather everything but if he left anything out they wouldn’t know how to kill it or close the portal that it came through.

“Okay, I have everything the book has to say about it so let’s get started” The whole pack is sitting in the pack house living room, tired and weary but hopeful at what Stiles could gather.

“Rugario are an ancient race, they have been around since the start of our own time. They are savages that thrive and grow on killing people. They take the energy from those that they kill and use that to grow stronger. When the writer of the tome came in contact with them they were living in the deep woods of a place that doesn’t exist any more. They are from earth but they were vicious and killed whoever came near them. The sorcerer that damned them to their own world was the strongest of his time and maybe of all time because there really hasn’t been anyone else that could do what he had done. The sorcerer planted a tree where the portal was made and the tree moves and never stays in one place for very long. To kill them is almost impossible, but there is a way, a very hard way that may kill everyone trying to do it.” Stiles explained and the pack nodded, all listening intently.

“How do we do it?” Isaac asked and Stiles turned to the book and looked at the page he had been going back to since he found it.

“We need to find the tree and trap the Rugario in the vicinity of the tree with cobalt ash. It’s a very rare ash that I’ve only ever heard of once and it’s very expensive to get your hands on. When we have it trapped, it’s going to be on me to send it back.”

“What about killing it? Isn't that easier?” Liam asked and Stiles really wanted to hit him.

“Unless you are willing to kill twenty people and gather their energies and then use that energy to forge a blade from steel that has been mined in South Africa by virgins under the full moon, be my guest.” Stiles stared him down, the rest of the pack sighing at the impossibility of the weapon.

“You don’t have that lying around?” Liam asked and this time Derek really hit him. Stiles shook his head and looked back down at the book.

“What I was saying after that was that we need to trap it and then I need to open the portal and we need to have it pushed through and then close it again. Then I have to burn the tree with mountain ash, sealing the portal shut”

“Do we know where the tree is?” Scott asked and Stiles nodded.

“Yeah, it’s called the Nemeton if you can believe it or not. We just need to find the nemeton in the woods and then lure the creature there, trap it with rare cobalt ash and then open a portal. Easy enough”

“That tree is always in the middle of all of our problems” Allison muttered and the rest of the pack nodded along. The tree has been at the centre of all  of their problems since it got activated back in their high school days. Stiles didn’t think it would still be a problem after Derek said that they really haven’t seen it since Stiles actually left town.

“Okay, now let’s start thinking about what to do. We need to get that tree and a way to lure the Rugario out into the woods and then we need to get that cobalt ash.” Derek made a list, eyes jumping from Stiles to Lydia and then to Allison.

“I may have a contact for the ash, or someone that could help me get enough” Stiles nodded and Derek actually made a note of it.

“I’ll try and see if I can find more info on luring an ancient forbidden race” Lydia added and Isaac, Parrish and Erica nodded, they would be joining her in her search.

“I’ll arrange and lead the searches for the tree.” Allison supplied and the rest of the pack nodded, they would need a lot of feet for their search and they wouldn’t be risking it by sending the pack out to search alone.

\--

It takes much longer than they would like. It takes three days of no sleep and long hours of searching to find the Nemeton in the deepest parts of the woods. The stump standing proud in the woods as Allison called Stiles that they had been successful.

It takes just as long to get a hold of the cobalt ash. It was expensive and Stiles now owes a lot more favours than before and Derek’s trust fund is a lot less due to the purchase. Black market magic wasn’t cheap.

Lydia on the other hand hasn’t found a thing about the luring of the Rugario. Tomes didn’t say a single thing, just to run the other way if you ever found one. That really wasn’t what they needed at the moment. People were dying and they were no closer to catching the thing than  they were at the start of the week.

“Maybe we should just tease it and it’ll follow us while it tries to kill us”Liam, Stiles has decided, wasn’t the smartest tool in the shed. 

“I don’t think we can just poke it until it gets irritated and comes chasing after us” Scott pointed out, shaking his head at the younger beta.

“There has to be something to get it to the tree” Kira muttered and Stiles knew there had to be something that they were missing. They’ve been staring at the information for so long that they felt like they knew everything there was to know about the Rugario and their evil ways. They needed new eyes on the topic but who could they ask? The whole pack was working on this, trying to stop Rugario before it killed the whole town.

“Maybe we should switch up the tasks, everyone that was looking for the tree take over from those that were on research. New eyes should be helpful at this moment.” Stiles spoke up, the pack looking to Derek to see what he thought of the idea.

“Switch up and get to working on that luring. There has to be something they like.” Derek ordered, eyes hard and shoulders rigid with the stress of the situation, if only they could stop time while they tried to figure their plans out, to have the time to get the plan perfect and not just an outline of a plan that may work or not.

\--

The opening of a portal took a lot out of Stiles. It took a whole lot of power to open a rip and then open it big enough to shove something through it. Stiles learnt this the hard way while he was practising in the backyard of the pack house. He had to get it perfect or what good would it be if they had Rugario and they couldn’t send it back?

“You need to stop or you’ll burn yourself out” Stiles heard a voice break through his concentration, the portal he had been forming shaking as his concentration broke. He felt the energy leave his body as the portal snapped closed and his legs gave out from under him. Before he could hit the ground Stiles felt himself being caught, strong arms wrapping around him.

“I told you to stop” Derek sighed, helping Stiles up, Stiles leaning against him for the umpteenth time that week.

“I told you I needed to get that portal perfect” Stiles scrunched his hand up in the fabric of Derek’s shirt, he’s been at it since he could get the cobalt ash, he had to have perfected it by now.

“You won’t get it if you’re tired and exhausted, you won’t be able to help when we need you.” Stiles closed his eyes, the words hitting harder than he thought they would, McKay jumping up in his thoughts. She would have said the same thing.

“You sound just like her” Stiles muttered, fist loosening and letting go of Derek’s shirt. He pushed himself away from Derek on shaky legs.

“Stiles?” Derek looked worried as Stiles shook his head, turning away from Derek and back to the house.

“Not now, Derek” He sighed, he was tired but a different kind of tired now, the town and the people and the Rugario had been keeping him so busy that he had stopped thinking about her. He hated himself in that moment, he didn’t mean to forget, he didn’t mean to start healing but it happened without him realising it.

He dropped down on the bed in the guest room, eyes staring up at the ceiling. She would want him to be happy, she would want him to heal and to move forward, she would want him to grow stronger, she would just want him to remember her. He would do just that. 

\--

 


End file.
